‘He was stuck for 18 hours’: Kin of Bihar worker who died after falling into DDA manhole in Delhi

He added that Birju’s wife and his three children – boys aged 6 and 4 years and a 2-year-old girl — all live in Bihar. The four, along with Birju’s 75-year-old mother, all depend on Birju’s income, he said.

“I got a call last night. They told me that he was stuck in the pothole since Monday,” Jai added.

Police have said that Begumpur police station had received a PCR call at 2.36 pm on Tuesday from Amir Hussain – a fellow worker of Birju – reporting a missing person, suspected to have fallen into a sewer in Rohini’s Sector 32.

Birju, police said, was drinking with Budhan Das alias Suraj, another fellow worker, on Monday evening. “They were returning to their makeshift jhuggis located near an under construction building. About 200 m from his room, jhuggi 57, Birju lost his balance and fell in an open manhole,” an officer said.

“(During questioning), Budhan Das said that he did not inform anyone at night, as he was intoxicated and informed Amir Hussain as soon as he regained his senses on Tuesday afternoon,” said DCP (Rohini) Rajeev Ranjan.
Police said that while Das told Amir that Birju had fallen in a manhole, he couldn’t remember where.

Following the PCR call, teams from Delhi Police, Delhi Fire Service, and DDA were informed. Police claimed they immediately reached the spot, but it was another three hours before fire brigade personnel could retrieve the body from the manhole. Birju was taken to a hospital, where he was declared dead.

On Wednesday, the manhole in which Birju fell was found covered. According to local residents, late Tuesday, the manhole, along with a few more on the same road, were covered.

They added that people often avoid this particular two-lane road in Begampur, surrounded by under-construction buildings and vacant plots on both sides, after sunset. “The manholes are open, only one lamp post works… The chowk ahead is known as ‘chakku chowk’, as many instances of stabbing and snatching have been reported here,” said Braham Dutt Sharma, a member of Resident Welfare Association of Ward 27 in Begampur. He added that multiple instances of animals falling in manholes have also been reported.

Police, meanwhile, have added sections 285 (danger in public way) and 106 (death by negligence) of BNS against unknown people in the FIR. The DDA did not respond to queries on the matter.