Thane, April 7 (IANS) The four-year-old miracle survivor of Thursday’s Daighar building crash in Thane finally opened her eyes to harsh reality Sunday, and cried, much to the relief of surviving relatives and siblings, doctors said.
The victim, Sandhya Thakur, had been unable to open her eyes, swollen with dust, watering in the eyes and psychological trauma after the seven-storey building collapsed Thursday.
She had spent several hours under the debris before rescuers dug her out.
A total of 74 persons were killed in the crash, making it the worst-ever building collapse tragedy in the state in the past decade.
Sandhya told rescuers, in broken sentences, her parents’ names. She also mentioned her six siblings who lived with her in Mumbai, and an aunt and a grandfather, who live in her native village.
With great difficulty, the rescuers managed to find that Kiran, Sandhya’s mother, had died in the building crash. The child’s father and some of her siblings are still missing. Rescue operations were called off Saturday.
Unable to open her eyes, Sandhya cried and asked for her parents, giving rescuers a harrowing time.
A man hailing from Thane, identified as Joselyn, took Sandhya under his care, consoling and feeding her as efforts continued to trace her relatives.
Sunday morning, Sandhya opened her eyes. Doctors attending to her said her vision was unharmed.
Earlier, doctors had carried out x-ray tests and confirmed that she had not suffered any other internal injuries or fractures. They confirmed that minor injuried sustained on her body were healing satisfactorily.
Sunday morning, the Kalyan Police took Sandhya under their charge, relieving Joselyn of the responsibility, but the little girl wailed to go back to him.
Joselyn, in his mid-50s, works as a daily labourer in Thane. When he heard about Sandhya’s plight, he rushed to Kalwe Hospital where she was admitted and took care of her for the past four days.
Medicos and police are hopeful she will calm down soon, as efforts continue to trace her kin.
Meanwhile, as Sandhya’s sad saga unfolded on television channels, authorities were flooded with offers of monetary help from all over India. There were people also asking if she might be adopted.
The opinions, beliefs and viewpoints expressed by authors, news service providers on this page do not necessarily reflect the opinions, beliefs and viewpoints of Hill Post. Any views or opinions are not intended to malign any religion, ethnic group, club, organization, company, or individual.
Hill Post makes no representations as to the accuracy or completeness of any information on this site page.
