Pune 2nd July 2025: In a strong ruling highlighting civic negligence, the Pune Civil Court has held the Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) accountable for the death of a 12-year-old boy who drowned in an uncovered water tank located next to a public toilet in Kasba Peth. The court has directed the civic body to pay ₹11 lakh in compensation to the boy’s family, along with 6% annual interest from the date the case was filed.
The verdict, delivered by Civil Judge Vikramsingh Bhandari, described the incident as a result of gross negligence and a complete failure by PMC to maintain essential public infrastructure.
The tragedy occurred on the night of April 9, 2018. Tushar Babu Ramoshi, a 12-year-old boy from a daily wage labourer’s family, went to use a public toilet near his home around 8:30 pm. When he did not return, his worried parents began searching for him. He was later found unconscious in an uncovered water tank adjacent to the toilet. He was rushed to a hospital, where he was declared dead. The postmortem report confirmed drowning due to asphyxiation.
Tushar’s mother, Jayashree Ramoshi, worked as a domestic help, and his father, Babu alias Mansingh Ramoshi, was a daily-wage labourer. The grieving family later filed a civil suit against PMC, holding the municipal commissioner and officials from the health and building permission departments accountable.
Represented by Advocates Amit Rathi, Poonam Mavani, and Aditya Jadhav, the family argued that the water tank, situated near a public facility used frequently by children and adults alike, had been left uncovered and lacked basic safety measures. The court concurred, noting that the civic body failed in its duty to ensure public safety.
Terming the incident a "complete dereliction of duty," the court ordered PMC to pay ₹11 lakh to the family, with 6% annual interest from the case’s filing date. While acknowledging that no financial compensation can truly account for the loss of a child, the court emphasized that public authorities must be held accountable to prevent such avoidable tragedies in the future.