Delhi laborer dies after falling into open 14-foot-deep manhole
What's the story
A 30-year-old daily wage laborer, Birju Kumar, died after falling into an open manhole in Rohini's Sector 32, Delhi, on Tuesday, days after a 25-year-old man died after falling into a pit in Janakpuri. Kumar was a resident of Bihar's Samastipur district and lived near the site of the incident. An eyewitness, Tejpal Yadav, claimed he alerted authorities after seeing Kumar in the pit, maintained by the DDA, since Monday.
Delayed action
Yadav's allegations
Yadav alleged that despite Kumar's friends informing the police at 4:00pm no action was taken until he called. "I came to know that a man had fallen into a pit...the police had not intimated any department," Yadav said. He added DDA officers arrived only after his call and hurriedly covered open drains with manhole covers.
Incident
'They were covering open drains in haste'
"The incident occurred yesterday. After coming here, we saw that DDA officers had arrived and brought manhole covers with them. They were covering open drains in haste. At that time, only a beat officer was present, and private tankers were also there." "When questioned, they told us that the department was still on the way, even though they had been called at 4:00pm. I dialled 112, and within 15 minutes the entire department turned up," the witness said.
Investigation underway
Investigations underway
The Delhi Police and Fire Services were alerted about the incident around 3:00pm on Tuesday. Deputy Commissioner of Police (Rohini) Rajeev Ranjan told HT that Kumar was retrieved from the sewer after six hours but had already succumbed. The body was recovered around 8:30pm. Officials familiar with the investigation claimed Kumar was accompanied by a friend at the time of the event. The friend admitted to investigators that he and Kumar had been drinking throughout the day on Monday.
Safety measures
Similar incident in Janakpuri
An officer said the friend informed them he only realized Kumar had fallen into the drain when he regained consciousness on Tuesday afternoon. After the Janakpuri incident where a biker died after falling into an open pit, the Delhi government announced an eight-point safety framework to prevent such incidents in the future. The measures include regular inspections of construction sites and prompt reporting of any hazards to authorities. All work sites must also have clear and visible warning signs.