A devastating accident occurred in the Khunti district of Jharkhand on Monday, claiming the life of a young schoolboy. The child, a third-grade student at Rajyakrit Kanya Madhya Vidyalaya, had just finished his mid-day meal at school. Overcome with thirst, and with the school’s water pump non-functional, the boy went with his friends to a dilapidated well located outside the school. Tragically, he lost his footing and fell into the well, leading to his demise. The deceased was identified as 8-year-old Suraj Manjhi.
The incident unfolded at the Rajyakrit Kanya Madhya Vidyalaya in Hassa village, within the Murhu police station area. After eating the school lunch, the student went near the well to quench his thirst. He subsequently slipped and fell into the well. School officials, upon learning of the situation, immediately rushed to the well, retrieved the child, and brought him to Murhu CHC. Sadly, doctors pronounced the child dead upon arrival. The incident caused significant distress at the scene.
It has been reported that the school’s water pump has been out of order for several days, resulting in the lack of a proper water supply. The cook was responsible for fetching water from the well for the preparation of the mid-day meals and for drinking water for the students. Despite these arrangements, older children sometimes went to the well outside to drink water after lunch.
On Monday, after having his mid-day meal, third-grade student Suraj Manjhi and some other children went to the well to drink water. During this time, he slipped, fell into the well, and unfortunately, lost his life. Recognizing the gravity of the situation, the District Education Superintendent has initiated an investigation into the incident and has directed that those responsible be held accountable.
This tragic incident follows a similar event that happened in June 2025 in Rani Tola, Murhu police station area, Khunti district. Two young children died after falling into a well while playing near a construction site. While the district administration had deployed an NDRF team to rescue the children, they were unable to save them.
