7-year-old boy strays onto highway in Odisha; rescued by patrolling cops

BHUBANESWAR: A seven-year-old boy who strayed out of a gated apartment complex unnoticed and wandered onto the busy NH-16 near Pahala on Wednesday morning was rescued by alert police personnel on patrol, averting what could have been a major tragedy.The child was playing in the garden of an upscale residential apartment complex when he walked out through the gate without being stopped by security staff and reached the national highway.His parents realised he was missing shortly afterwards and approached the police. When they failed to locate him, they checked CCTV footage and found that he had left the apartment complex.A patrolling team from Pahala police station noticed the child crying near the highway. Concerned for his safety, the police personnel took him into their vehicle and tried to comfort him by offering him biscuits and water.As the child was unable to provide his home address, the police began making inquiries at nearby residential complexes to trace his family. After visiting several housing societies in the area, they finally identified the apartment where the boy lived and reunited him with his parents.The child was safely handed over to his family, bringing an end to an anxious ordeal.Both the parents and police officials blamed the incident on negligence by the apartment’s security personnel.“The child should not have been able to leave the premises unnoticed. We have sensitised the security guards to remain vigilant,” Awini Kumar Jena, inspector-in-charge of Pahala police station, told TOI.The boy’s father said the timely intervention of the police had prevented a potentially disastrous situation.“Anything could have happened to my child on the highway had the police not spotted him in time. We cannot thank the Pahala police staff enough for rescuing him and bringing him back safely,” said Srikant Maharana, the child’s father and a bank officer.You Can Also Check: Gold Rate in Bhubaneswar | Silver Rate in Bhubaneswar | Bank Holidays in Bhubaneswar | Public Holidays in Bhubaneswar | Petrol Price in Bhubaneswar | Diesel Price in Bhubaneswar | CNG Price in Bhubaneswar | LPG Price in BhubaneswarStay updated with the latest Bhubaneswar news. Download the TOI App.