The keypad phone, purchased nearly six months ago, already had a swollen battery plugged into a switch connected to a solar panel.
Kusum Kashyap, mother of the baby Neha, was not in the room at the time of the explosion.
She rushed in after hearing a loud noise and cried for help from her other daughter Nandini.
The baby suffered serious burn injuries and died during treatment in the hospital.
According to Uttar Pradesh Police it was a case of negligence by the parents, but no complaint had been lodged so far. Police said that the family said that it was an accident and did not want to press any charges.
The father of the child, Suneel Kumar Kashyap, 30, is a laborer and lives in an under-construction house without a power connection. His family uses a solar plate and a battery for lighting and charging mobile phones.
According to reports, the father had gone to work while his wife, a homemaker, was at home with their daughters.
Kusum, reportedly, kept the phone on the charpoy on which the baby was sleeping.
“I was speaking to a neighbor when I heard my daughter Nandini shouting for help. The charpoy was ablaze because of the mobile explosion. Neha was badly burned. I never thought that my mobile phone could be deadly for my daughter, otherwise I wouldn’t t have kept it there,” she was quoted as saying by Times of India.
Suneel’s brother, Ajay Kumar, said that the phone was getting charged via a USB cable but the adapter was not connected, which is why it exploded.
“My brother didn’t have much money for Neha’s treatment at a private hospital, otherwise, her life may have been saved,” he told ToI.
Disclaimer Statement: This content is authored by an external agency. The views expressed here are those of the respective authors/entities and do not represent the views of Economic Times (ET). ET does not guarantee, vouch for or endorse any of its contents nor is responsible for them in any manner whatever. Please take all necessary steps to ascertain that any information and content provided is correct, updated, and verified. ET hereby disclaims any and all warranties, express or implied, relating to the report and any content therein.
.