13-year-old boy collapses while playing kabaddi, dies

Gaurav collapsed while participating in an inter-school kabaddi competition

Thirteen-year-old Gaurav Amol Vetal's parents might have never thought that a kabaddi game would end in their son's death. But that's exactly what happened during an inter-school competition in Pune on Saturday evening. While the family refuses to conduct the final rites till they know the exact reason behind Gaurav's death, the Shirur police have registered a case of accidental death and are investigating the matter.

Gaurav was the only child of the Vetals. While a road accident that happened last year has left his father bed-ridden, her mother works on a farm to run the family. The deceased was a Std VIII student of Navodya Vidyalaya school in Pimpale Jagtap area of Shirur.

Speaking to mid-day, Gaurav's maternal uncle Ankush Sonawane said, "He was very good at playing kabaddi. He has been into this sport for the past four years and also did not have any record of illness. He collapsed while he was playing on Saturday. No doctor was called till we got to know about the incident. Later, we rushed him to the hospital, where he was declared brought dead. We demand strict action against the school."

When contacted, school principal B Nair said, "Gaurav was selected for the competition based on merit. This is a great loss. We tried our best to save him." Confirming the development, Ramesh Galande, senior inspector of Shirur police station said, "We have registered an accidental death report and are investigating the case. The body has been sent for post-mortem."

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