Body of girl who fell into nullah found

KARACHI: The body of a four-year-old child, who had reportedly fallen into a nullah near Valika Chowrangi in SITE on Saturday, was found early on Monday morning.

According to witnesses, a resident had found Noor Fatima's body caught with some garbage inside the nullah. Upon the discovery, the girl's father, Azmat Khan, was immediately informed and the body recovered from the nullah with the help of other residents from the area.

Residents said that the location where the body was found was at a distance from where Fatima fell. They added that the body had decayed after being in the drain water for two days.

Fatima reportedly fell off a bridge and into the nullah while playing. Rescue teams reached the site three hours later. Rescuers from Edhi Foundation and Pakistan Navy were unable to find her until Sunday, when the search operation was called off with her father's consent.

Talking to The Express Tribune, Khan said that the man who found the body had seen the child's hand when he went to throw garbage in the nullah. He pointed out that although his daughter's body had been lost in the nullah for two days, no political leaders or government agencies, apart from the Pakistan Navy, had bothered to inquire about the situation.

"Political leaders swarm to us when elections are near, but none of them show up when a poor man is going through difficult times," he said. "Countless children and people have died after falling into this nullah, but there are still no security arrangements," he added, demanding that the authorities install fences around the nullah to prevent similar incidents from happening in the future. Fatima's funeral prayers were offered in a nearby mosque, after which she was laid to rest in a local graveyard.

Published in The Express Tribune, January 28^th, 2020.