Freak accident at Hyderabad mall, toddler loses 3 fingers

The three-year-old girl's fingers were severed as she put her hand in a machine at a play zone at City Center Mall in the Banjara Hills area.

Hyderabad: A family's visit to a shopping mall here on Sunday took an ugly turn after the hand of one of the children was caught up in a gaming machine leading to the amputation of three of her fingers.

The three-year-old girl's fingers were severed as she put her hand in a machine at a play zone at City Center Mall in the Banjara Hills area. The victim's family claimed that the accident happened due to the negligence of those managing 'SMASH Zone', the gaming centre set up in the shopping mall. According to police, Mehta Jahan of Ibrahimnagar, Banjara Hills along with his wife Mahia Begum took their three children to the small play area on the fourth floor of the mall. While the children were playing, Mehwish Lubna their 3-year-old daughter suddenly put her hand in a running machine.

The child's three fingers were partially crushed after getting trapped in the machine. The parents rushed the child to Yashoda Hospital for treatment where doctors amputated three fingers of her right hand. The doctors clarified that the fingers were completely damaged and could not be reattached. The child's father lodged a complaint with the Banjara Hills police regarding the incident.

"At the time of the incident, the mall management and the staff of 'SMASH Zone' were completely negligent. Even after the accident, the staff was not available to take care of the children playing in the gaming zone. This incident is a complete security failure. Adequate precautions were not taken with the machine," the girl's father said in the complaint.

The accident, he added, happened due to the negligence of the management. "When the organizers were approached for the CCTV footage, they removed the CCTV coverage of the incident area. They said that they do not have any footage of that area. Legal action should be taken against the City Center Mall management for the damage caused to my daughter," he added. Banjara Hills police have registered a case and are investigating.