'Ankit's cap is still inside the tank, I want it back'

New Delhi: "He was wearing a cap that day. It's still in the tank, I want it back," said an inconsolable Poonam, mother of Ankit Kumar who died after falling into his school's septic tank on January 27. The school claims he was going to use one of the newly built toilets when he fell into the open tank.
The four-year-old-a nursery student at MCD School Number 2 in Kapashera, southwest Delhi-was the chirpy bird of the family."I listened to his chatter and watched him pick up his bag for school that morning. I never thought I was seeing him for the last time," said Poonam. Time has stood still for Ankit's parents and elder brother since his death. They returned to Delhi on Tuesday evening after performing a puja at their village in Samastipur, Bihar. Poonam is a homemaker and her husband Rajesh Kumar a tailor.
"We have no land in the village, only a mud house. We moved to the city five years ago because we wanted our children to have a good education," said Rajesh. It was a hard landing for the couple as Rajesh struggled to find work and they lived in a hovel, one of many set around a pucca yard that serves as a communal washing and cooking space, besides a playground for the kids.
"We somehow get by on the 8,000-odd rupees I earn a month but we were happy. My older son, who is nine, likes studying and Ankit was always the first one up for school. He was bright too, so we dreamt of better days," said Rajesh.
Poonam took the school's call that day because Rajesh was working. "They didn't tell her anything about the septic tank. They just asked her to come over, saying Ankit had hurt his head in a fall." At the school, she was told Ankit had been taken to hospital.
"There were so many teachers but no one told me what had happened. Imagine a mother's state in such a situation. They took us to the hospital only after my sister-in-law threatened to start a protest," said Poonam. The parents said Ankit's body had remained inside the tank for two hours."I was crying before them but nobody in the school said a word. Why?" said Poonam.
When TOI visited the school on Wednesday, the septic tank had been locked and covered but the new toilets beside it were in use. The school runs in two shifts with girls and nursery students attending in the morning and boys in the afternoon. Each shift has its own staff, including the principal.
Teachers TOI spoke to said the tank was usually covered. The new toilets were built near it when the old ones were demolished. A lot of construction is going on in the school premises but only some of the sites have been fenced. Even a pit near the main gate did not have barriers. "The school always seemed safe. I never worried about my children when they were at school. But I can't stand the sight of it now," said Rajesh, "It's difficult to live here. I am thinking of making a fresh start somewhere else. I have to live for my surviving son."
About the drowning at Ryan International School, he said, "I came to know about it yesterday. I can only say that the authorities should learn from these incidents so that no other child dies like our son."
The family hasn't heard about compensation so far. They have been asked to appear in court on Thursday. The school principal, who was arrested on Tuesday, has been released for now.