Kochi, Feb 7 (IANS): In a tragic accident, a three-year-old boy from Rajasthan, who arrived with his parents at the Cochin International Airport Limited (CIAL), was found in a waste pit on Friday after he went missing for a while.

The kid was taken to a nearby hospital, but he passed away soon thereafter.

Sensing that the kid was missing, the parents who were part of a visiting group started searching for him. The security officials also joined the search and after checking the CCTV visuals at the airport, the kid was found immersed in a waste pit at an uninhabited place at the airport.

The travel group from Rajasthan after arriving at the airport went into a cafe at the airport complex located near the domestic terminal and it was from there the kid went missing.

The waste pit is located at a place where there is no pathway as it’s sandwiched between buildings on one side and on the three sides it’s covered with plants.

The CIAL authorities have expressed deep sadness over the incident and are helping out the distraught parents.

CIAL airport, the first airport in the country that started under the now popular PPP model, is the biggest airport in Kerala and was the brainchild of legendary Congress Chief Minister K. Karunakaran in 1999.

By now, the shareholders who invested in the airport have received more than what they invested by way of dividends.

During the previous fiscal year, the airport operated over 70,000 flights, which were used by more than one crore passengers. The CIAL recorded Rs 412 crore profit after tax and declared a dividend of 45 per cent during the same period.