HYDERABAD: Did negligence of panchayat officials, and that of the local municipality lead to the death of a young man identified as a 35-year-old Raviyul Sheikh from West Bengal, who accidentally slipped and fell into a drain and died in Nizampet? According to locals, many complaints were made to municipality officials about the 50 metre stretch of the drain which was open, however, they did not act. The body of the young man was fished out early in the morning on Monday, almost one kilometre away from the place of the incident.
“We have been lodging complaints about the open stretch of the drain with the panchayat for over five years now, as every monsoon, there is a fear of someone falling into it. It is such a small issue and it could have been easily rectified, as only 50 metres of the storm-water drain is uncovered,” said VL Peramallu, a resident.
It is learnt that the opening of the storm-water drain narrows down considerably, slowing down the pace of the water going in, which leads to severe inundation. This is perhaps why the young man did not notice the open gap in the drain and accidentally fell into it.
“Had the drain been evenly wide, the water may have flown in sooner. Since the place was inundated fully, perhaps, he did not realise that the cement slab was missing,” added another resident.After a 12-hour search from Sunday evening to Monday morning, the body was eventually found. “We have asked the district administration to provide compensation for the deceased, however, it has not been sanctioned yet. We are hoping it will be processed soon,” said Ishaq Khan, municipal commissioner, Nizampet. “It is very unfortunate that in this age, we still have open drains,” said Dr Vasireddy, another resident.
Civic officials finally cover the drain
After a life was lost due to the apathy of civic authorities, the municipality woke up and laid slabs to shut the storm-water drain which is four-feet deep. The citizens reacted, asking the government to work on civic infrastructure of new municipalities