Pushed from moving train, boy loses hand, leg

A 10-year-old physically challenged boy was allegedly pushed out of a running train leading to amputation of his right hand and leg, police said on Friday.

Pravakar Pradhan of Raghunathpur area in Jagatsinghpur district, who used to earn livelihood by begging in trains, was allegedly pushed from the running Palasa-Paradip DMU Thursday night.

The boy who had already lost his left hand up to elbow one-and-half years ago in a fire incident, got his right leg severed under the wheels of the train wh­ile his right hand was completely damaged, S C B Medical College and Hospital Superintendent Dr D N Moharana said.

No other option

“There was no option for doctors other than amputating the boy’s right hand and right leg as gangrene had set in,” he sa­id adding that Pravakar was now left with a single limb, the left leg.

Pravakar had lost his father six years ago. He was the earning member of the family comprising his mother, a widow, and a younger brother, social activist B K Roy, who had admitted him at Jagatsinghpur district headquarter hospital Thursday night, said. The boy was shifted to the medical coll­e­ge hospital on Friday morning.

Meanwhile, the Orissa High Court directed the Cuttack district collector to ensure free treatment of the boy. The HC also asked the Railway police to probe the incident and submit a report on February 13.

Acting on a petition filed by Nationalist Lawyers Forum secretary Nishikanta Mishra, a division bench comprising Justice B P Das and Justice P K Nayak ordered the superintendents of Jagatsinghpur district and government railway police to probe the incident and submit a status report on February 13.