Bhubaneswar : A 21-year-old youth lost his life after falling into an open drain at Jhola Sahi in Cuttack. The deceased has been identified as Rahul, who hails from Rajasthan.
As per reports, Rahul had come to Cuttack to meet his relatives but died after falling into the drain yesterday. He was on his way to a teashop when the unfortunate incident occurred. Several low-lying parts of Cuttack were waterlogged following heavy rainfall yesterday.
The incident has spread shockwaves in the area as this is the second such death to be reported in the past couple of months in the city.
Meanwhile, the youth’s father today lodged a complaint with Purighat police in connection with the incident.
Narrating the incident, the deceased’s father said, “I run a tea shop in Puri. I received a call informing about the incident in which my son fell into an open drain and later he being admitted to a hospital. Soon after receiving the call, I came to Cuttack and learnt about his death.”
“The city is full of open drains. Therefore, I request the administration to act immediately before more lives are lost like my son. We have relatives in Cuttack and my son had just come here yesterday to visit them. He was my eldest son,” said the deceased Rahul’s father.
Commenting on the issue, local corporator Gagan Ojha said, “This is a complete failure by the government and the Cuttack administration. They make tall claims, but the open drains expose the reality. Previously, I had myself taken the Commissioner to the spot and requested to put slabs. They had even prepared an estimated of Rs 1.4 crore for the restoration work. However, they stopped the money and told that the JICA has taken tender for work in Cuttack Municipal Corporation area. However, JICA has miserably failed to do any work in Cuttack.”
“If such negligence continues, then many more deaths will occur and the administration will be responsible for it,” he added.
Meanwhile, the CMC officials could not be contacted over the matter.
