A man went missing and was feared drowned after he reportedly fell into an uncovered drain (nullah) during rain in Lucknow’s Thakurganj area on Saturday morning.
The man, identified as Suresh, 42, a daily wage worker, had just left his home for work when he reportedly stepped into the open drain that was submerged due to water logging.
The incident, which occurred at around 7 am under zone 6 of the Lucknow Municipal Corporation (LMC) , has sparked outrage among residents who alleged it happened due to the civic body’s laxity. As soon as the news spread, top LMC officials, including municipal commissioner Gaurav Kumar, additional municipal commissioner Arvind Kumar Rao and chief engineer Mahesh Verma reached the site.
A search operation was launched around 8:30 am with State Disaster Response Force (SDRF), LMC teams and police personnel joining efforts to locate the missing man. The search was extended to the Sarkata drain where the Thakurganj nullah merges.
However, Suresh remained untraced till late evening. “Our teams are at both the incident site and the Sarkata drain. We are trying our best to trace him. Once that is done, we will fix responsibility and take strict action against those at fault,” municipal commissioner Gaurav Kumar told HT.
Earlier, on September 5 last year, a six-year-old girl Nasra fell into an uncovered drain in Mallahitola, Wazirganj. Her body was found near a Bhaisakund Gomti Barrage, some 6-7 km away from the incident site, days after the tragic incident. Even at that time, locals had urged the authorities to cover the drain, reinstall safety nets, and enhance security around hazardous areas to protect lives but to no avail.
On Saturday, Lucknow mayor Sushma Kharakwal said she was unaware of the incident. “I don’t know if the man has fallen into the drain or not. I am currently busy due to defence minister Rajnath Singh’s visit. I will take a report from the commissioner once I’m free,” she told HT.
When contacted, LMC chief engineer Mahesh Verma said: “I don’t know whether the incident is true or not because the depth of the drain is not that much which could take away a man.” “Teams are working to trace him as soon as possible,” said the SHO Thakurganj.
According to eyewitnesses, Suresh was on his way to work when he stepped into the waterlogged drain where failed to see one of the missing drain covers. He slipped into the open drain and disappeared under the water.
“My husband left for work around 7am. We have complained multiple times about the broken slab of the drain but no action was taken,” said Suresh’s wife Renu as she cried uncontrollably. The incident has exposed glaring lapses in the LMC’s drainage maintenance work, especially in low-lying areas like Thakurganj. Locals claimed that the slab was broken while a private agency was hired by LMC for drain cleaning.
After removing the cover, workers allegedly left without restoring it, leading to constant waterlogging and posing a threat to pedestrians. Residents claimed that they repeatedly raised the issue on LMC helplines and with area officials, including LMC’s zone 6 in charge Manoj Yadav, but no action was taken.
“We told the corporator, called the LMC helpline and even approached junior engineers. No one listened. Now after this incident has occurred, officials have come into action as it is said to be their negligence,” said Manoj Verma, a resident of the area.
Anurag Pandey, former corporator of the area , also held LMC officials accountable for the incident. “The nullah was never cleaned properly. The private agency responsible for cleaning the drain had broken the cover while cleaning the drain and left it uncovered. Despite complaints, no action was taken,” he alleged.
Meanwhile, the family of the missing man along with other residents protested by blocking the main road of the area leading to a traffic jam. Later, police and other officials pacified them following which the road was cleared, claimed Pandey.
Rehan Ghazi, a commuter who often passes through the route, said such hazards are common across the city. “Many drains are open. Even corporators don’t bother. Nobody from LMC comes unless someone dies,” he said.
On April 21 this year, a minor boy died after falling into an uncovered sewage treatment plant pit in Shankarpurwa under LMC’s zone 7. At that time too, LMC had promised action, but no accountability was fixed. The incident has once again brought into focus the poor execution of civic works in the city and the absence of timely response from LMC and its engineering wing.