After Nepa tragedy, another child falls into open manhole in Karachi

Open manholes across Karachi have once again put children's lives at risk, as a first-grade female student fell into an uncovered manhole in Manghopir, just six days after a separate tragedy involving a three-year-old boy in the city shocked the nation.

According to the 24NewsHD TV channel, the latest incident occurred near Garam Chashma in Manghopir, where young student Anayah Ameen slipped into an open manhole while returning home from school.

A passer-by, witnessing the fall, managed to rescue her in time, preventing another tragedy in a city already reeling from multiple similar incidents.

Residents said the manhole was located near the school and had remained uncovered.

The episode follows a heartbreaking incident on Sunday night, November 30, when three-year-old Ibrahim fell into an open gutter near Nippa Chowrangi.

The manhole had reportedly been covered with cardboard instead of a proper lid. Ibrahim, walking ahead of his mother and behind his father, disappeared into the sewage right before his mother’s eyes.

Despite hours of search efforts, rescue teams were unable to recover the boy alive, retrieving his body only after 14 hours.

Video evidence later revealed that a dumper truck had driven over the manhole days earlier, dislodging the lid into the drain. Authorities, however, failed to replace it, leaving the opening exposed in a busy pedestrian area.

The tragedy triggered protests, with residents blocking the road to Gulshan-e-Iqbal by burning tyres and accusing civic authorities of criminal negligence.

The repeated incidents have renewed public outrage over Karachi’s collapsing civic infrastructure, which continues to pose life-threatening dangers, especially for children.

Reporter: Osama Malik