• Source:JND
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Pune News: A 12-year-old boy died in a tragic lift accident at a housing society in Charholi, Pune, on Thursday evening. The incident took place at Ram Smruti Cooperative Society in Chovisawadi around 5 PM.

Police identified the victim as Ameya Phartade, a resident of the society. CCTV footage showed him playing near the lift with his bicycle before repeatedly using it and running up and down the stairs. Shortly before the accident, he pressed the button for the third floor, quickly stepped out and ran upstairs. Moments later, he was found trapped between the third and fourth floors.

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According to a Times Of India report, residents noticed something was wrong when the lift stopped moving for a long time. On checking, they discovered Ameya stuck, with his upper body protruding outside the lift. Panicked, they tried breaking open the sliding double doors but could not free him. His parents were immediately informed, and the fire brigade was alerted.

Firefighters who reached the spot shifted the lift to manual operation from the terrace and carefully lowered it to the third floor. Ameya was rescued and rushed to a nearby private hospital but doctors declared him dead on arrival.

Deputy Commissioner of Police (Zone III) Bapu Bangar said an accidental death case has been registered. “We will wait for expert reports to confirm if the lift had a technical fault or if maintenance lapses were involved. The fire brigade’s findings will also guide further action,” he said.

Senior Inspector Pramod Wagh of Dighi police added that the person responsible for maintaining the society’s lifts had reportedly died of a heart attack earlier that day. Police are now contacting the lift manufacturing company for a technical opinion.

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Residents of the society said the lifts, which are of the sliding double-door type and lack automatic doors, were checked every few months under an annual contract. They also pointed out that the society has no security guard.

Chief fire officer Rushikesh Chipade confirmed that the fire brigade was called nearly half an hour after the incident. By then, the boy had sustained critical injuries.