Tamil Nadu: District Collector honours youth for saving child from drowning

Vijayakumar (24), a resident of Vilathikulam in Thoothukudi, was working as a taxi driver in the area. He was on a trip to Courtallam in December last year when the incident happened. At that time, Harini, an eight-year-old girl from Palakkad in Kerala slipped and fell into the water while taking a bath with her family in the waterfalls and got stuck between the rocks.

Chennai: Thoothukudi District Collector Dr K Senthil Raj honoured a 24-year-old man and gave him a job as a car driver temporarily on Friday for saving a child, who fell into the strong currents of Old Courtallam Falls. The incident took place last year in December in Courtallam of Tamil Nadu's Tenkasi district. According to sources, Vijayakumar (24), a resident of Vilathikulam in Thoothukudi, was working as a taxi driver in the area. He was on a trip to Courtallam in December last year when the incident happened. At that time, Harini, an eight-year-old girl from Palakkad in Kerala slipped and fell into the water while taking a bath with her family in the waterfalls and got stuck between the rocks.

After seeing the incident, Vijayakumar immediately jumped into the steep gorge and picked up the child, who was reeling in the strong current and brought her to safety within a few minutes. The people present at the spot appreciated Vijayakumar's brave attempt. A video of the incident went viral on social media.

Since Vijayakumar belongs to the Thoothukudi district, District Collector Senthil Raj honoured him and presented him with a certificate of appreciation for his timely rescue operation in the presence of Additional Collector (Development) Thakare Subam Gnanadev Rao. The Collector said that he would also be recommended for Tamil Nadu's award for brave works.

In a similar incident in October last year, a child was rescued by a team of SDRF personnel from drowning in the Ganga river of Bihar's Vaishali district. SDRF personnel Rajeev Kumar, who was deputed at Ganga Ghat, saw the child drowning after which an SDRF team set off in three boats and rescued the child. The child was admitted to a nearby hospital and later referred to Sadar hospital for better treatment. The doctor at the hospital said the child's condition is better now.