BENGALURU: The menace of garbage burning has claimed the life of a three-year-old girl, who succumbed to the burns she suffered after accidentally falling into a pile of branches set ablaze in police quarters , Shivajinagar.Harshaali, daughter of Lokeshappa, 38, a constable attached with Cubbon Park traffic police station, fell into the fire when she was playing with other children on March 5. Undergoing treatment at Victoria Hospital, the child breathed her last on March 13.The incident came to light only after a WhatsApp post went viral on police groups on Monday. It was reportedly posted by Lokeshappa, who poured out his grief. Lokeshappa told TOI he’d sent the message to one of his friends. “What happened to my daughter shouldn’t happen to anyone. The authorities should take note of the tragedy and initiate appropriate measures,” he said.According to locals, the incident took place at a spot where garbage, mostly withered branches and leaf litter, was set on fire. Around 5pm on March 5, Harshaali and a boy of her age were playing with a ball, jostling to get hold of it. In the melee, the boy pushed Harshaali, who landed in the fire. The boy took to his heels. A passerby, Subhash, rushed to her help.“She was wearing nylon clothes, which caught fire. I had just entered the building and as I saw her, she began to run. I poured water from a nearby flower pot on her and removed her clothes,” Subhash said.He ended up burning his hand. Alerted by neighbours, Harshaali’s mother Sudhamani rushed to the spot, and shifted the child to Bowring Hospital. Doctors said she had sustained 30% burns and referred the girl to Victoria Hospital. But Harshaali failed to respond to treatment.

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