The death of a 27-year-old Indian IT professional after his car fell into an unmarked construction pit has raised questions around urban planning and road safety in India.
Last Friday, at around midnight, Yuvraj Mehta was driving home in Noida, a suburb of the capital Delhi, through dense winter fog when his car reportedly hit a low boundary wall and plunged into the deep pit full of water. The site had reportedly been dug up a few years ago before work was stalled.
Mehta, who didn't know how to swim, climbed on to the roof of his car as it began to sink and rang his father who rushed to the scene and alerted the emergency services. His father told reporters that Mehta remained there for close to two hours, flashing his phone's torch and shouting for help.
Then, his cries stopped. By the time authorities recovered his body, almost five hours had passed since the accident, local media reported.
Mehta's tragic death has made national headlines, with protests erupting at the accident site. Demonstrators accuse authorities of negligence and are demanding accountability.
This incident has sparked broader discussions about the state of infrastructure in major Indian cities. Many users on social media expressed their outrage, calling his death a system failure and sharing personal experiences of dangerous conditions on the roads.
Since the accident, police in Noida have registered cases against the developers responsible for the construction pit. The government has since removed a senior official and initiated an investigation into the incident.
The police have arrested one of the developers, Abhay Kumar, for alleged culpable homicide due to negligence. He remains in custody and has not commented on the allegations.
Mehta's father recalls receiving a phone call from his son moments after the accident, stating that he received assistance from local emergency services who faced challenges during the rescue attempt due to poor visibility and inadequate resources.
Eyewitnesses described their attempts to assist in the rescue and criticized the emergency responders for not acting quickly enough. Noida police have acknowledged the unfortunate nature of the incident but deny any negligence on their part.
