In January this year, an Indian-origin construction worker became a hero in Romania after risking his own life to save a five-year-old girl who fell through the ice of a frozen lake. This act that has earned him the title of honorary citizen in the city of Craiova.47-year-old Vipan Kumar jumped into the freezing waters of a lake in Craiova, a city in Romania, after spotting the child struggling in the water.Recalling the dramatic rescue, Kumar told Digi24 television station: “I was on a walk, with a friend of mine. I saw the little girl in the water, then I jumped immediately. The water was very cold; everything happened very quickly.”The Indian worker said there was little time to think before acting.“I just tried to get her out of the water, that’s all I thought about. The little girl was very brave,” Kumar said.Images of the rescue went firal on social media. Footage showed Kumar making his way across the ice on a sleigh towards the stranded child before the ice beneath him gave way. He managed to grab the girl’s arm and hold her above the freezing water until emergency teams arrived.Both Kumar and the child were pulled from the lake and taken to hospital suffering from hypothermic shock. They were in stable condition.The incident took place in a city park where the girl had been spending time with her parents. At one point, she jumped off a sled and ran onto the frozen lake. The ice cracked beneath her and she fell into the water.Her father immediately entered the lake in an attempt to save her but became trapped in the broken ice. People watching alerted emergency services as the situation unfolded.Craiova mayor Lia Olguta Vasilescu later announced that Kumar would receive the city’s honorary citizen title in recognition of his actions.“I decided to propose that he gets the title of honorary citizen. Craiova Local Council will formally grant the title, which comes with certain advantages.”“We hope that his altruistic and humane gesture will inspire others,” the mayor told HotNews.
Mayor Vasilescu also shared details about Kumar’s background in a Facebook post. She said the Indian national arrived in Romania in June 2025 and recently began working for a construction company in Malu Mare commune in Dolj county.“He is an Indian citizen. Vipan Kumar is 47 years old and has been in Romania since June. This month he became an employee of a company in Malu Mare commune, in Dolj county, as an unskilled worker in the construction field, and will obtain a residence permit,” Lia Olguta Vasilescu wrote at that time.Kumar’s actions have also drawn praise from his employer. The owner of the company where he works is considering rewarding him with a trip to India so he can reunite with his family. Kumar has an eight-year-old daughter who came to Romania in search of work and is employed as a construction labourer.His quick thinking and courage have transformed him from a migrant worker far from home into one of Craiova’s most celebrated residents.
