Editor Mr.Mayank Rawat ( Chief Editor Mr. Rohit Mishra )
New Delhi: “Over 40 children, but only one coach?” a teary-eyed Yudhveer Singh asked, a day after his 12-year-old nephew, Saksham Sehrawat, tragically drowned in a swimming pool at Wynberg-Allen School in Mussoorie.
Saksham, a Class VII student and an accomplished swimmer, had been training for the past four-five years. On Monday, the six-foot-tall athletic boy allegedly lost consciousness after completing two laps and slipped underwater.
“He had been swimming regularly at the Saket pool for the past few years, and not once did we feel the need to worry about him. He was an exceptional athlete — always active, disciplined and committed to fitness. He would go for runs, train rigorously for a child his age, and had even participated in tournaments recently,” Singh said.
After joining boarding school, Saksham remained dedicated to his practice, ensuring he stayed in peak physical condition, he added.
“He had broad shoulders and incredible flexibility. Given his strength and endurance, it is unimaginable and devastating for our family that such a tragedy could happen to him,” said Singh.
Alleging negligence on the part of the school authorities, the family claimed the 25-metre pool had no lifeguards and was supervised only by a single coach, despite at least 40 students being present.
“Leaving 35-40 students unattended in a pool with only one person watching over them is simply unacceptable. This is a serious matter that needs to be addressed. For a group of 40 students, there should have been at least four lifeguards present to ensure safety,” said Singh.
According to the family, Saksham was first noticed floating motionlessly in the water by two or three students, who initially assumed he was playing. However, when they saw that he wasn’t moving, they quickly alerted the coach. Saksham was immediately pulled out of the pool and the coach administered CPR before rushing him to the hospital, where he was declared dead.
“The children we spoke to — his friends and classmates — told us they first thought he was just joking around in the pool. But when they approached him and saw his face down, floating motionless on the surface, they realised something was wrong,” Singh said.
One of Saksham’s relatives said the Mussoorie police had assured the family they are conducting all necessary checks to rule out foul play. “We have been told he died due to heart failure, but we, along with the investigating officer, are awaiting the post-mortem report to get a clearer picture of what happened. We want to review the findings before deciding how to proceed.”
Speaking to TOI, Anil Kumar, the teacher-coordinator at Wynberg-Allen School, said: “The Wynberg-Allen family is deeply saddened by Saksham’s demise. The unfortunate incident occurred around 6am during a swimming practice session. An accomplished swimmer, Saksham completed two laps and then fell unconscious while standing at the poolside. He was immediately rescued, given CPR and taken to the hospital, where he was pronounced dead.”
Responding to allegations of negligence, Kumar said while one teaching instructor was present, ‘student monitors’ had been appointed near the pool to remain vigilant.
“There is always scope for improvement. We will ensure that moving forward, some changes are made and that such incidents do not happen anymore,” he added.
Saksham’s grieving family – originally farmers who migrated from UP’s Muzaffarnagar to build a successful construction business in south Delhi’s Sainik Farms — is struggling to cope with the loss. The family members had also been looking forward to celebrating his 13th birthday in July.
“We worked for 25 years in the city to give our children a better life, we have built our lives from scratch here. Seeing how ambitious our children are, we wanted to give them the best quality of education possible, send them to one of the best schools to study, learn and grow their skills, and now this… How could this happen?” Singh lamented.
Mayank Rawat
