Kasaragod: An 11-year-old boy died after getting entangled in the rope of a flagpole at an anganwadi near his home in Madikai panchayat on Thursday.

Aneek, the only child of Rajesh, a daily-wage labourer, and Neethu, a saleswoman, was found with the rope around his neck at the Nandankuzhi Anganwadi near Munnu Road in Cheranthala ward around 4.45 pm. He was rushed to the hospital but could not be saved.

Aneek lived at Munnu Road and was a Class 5 student at Government High School, Kanhirapoyil, around 2km from his home, in the same panchayat. He would regularly come to the open space near the anganwadi to play after returning from school, said Balakrishnan V, the Madikai panchayat member from Cheranthala ward. On Thursday, however, he was alone when he reached the ground. The other children from the neighbourhood who usually played with him study at Government Higher Secondary School, Chayyoth, and had an event there that day, Balakrishnan said.

Aneek appeared to have been playing around the flagpole and holding its rope when he lost his footing, according to Balakrishnan. The rope then tightened around his neck.

An autorickshaw driver who was in the area noticed what appeared to be a child near the flagpole and went to check. He found Aneek entangled in the rope and alerted nearby residents. They freed the boy and rushed him to hospital.

Balakrishnan said Aneek was unresponsive when he was found. He was declared dead at the hospital.

Aneek is survived by his parents and maternal grandmother.