Manhole death: A wakeup call for KMC

KANPUR : The recent tragic accidental death of 13-year-old Manish alias Golu, a resident of Barra-8, after he fell into a 28-ft-deep open sewer chamber near Ram Gopal crossing close to Green belt on Wednesday has once again led to an uproar in the city about uncovered sewer chambers, manholes and drains.
The family members of the victim blamed the Kanpur Municipal Corporation (KMC) for the tragedy.Utterly shocked over the sudden death of his son, J P Upadhyai said: “Had the Municipal Corporation officials covered the chamber, my son would not have died.” His voice choked soon after.
After Manish’s death, district officials issued instructions to concerned authorities to take preventive measures but nothing tangible has been done so far.
Reason, there are hundreds of chambers, manholes and drains over sewer lines without covers still lying unattended, including the one where Manish was killed, across the city. They are virtual death traps for vehicle users and citizens.
There are still several manholes along Panki Road, Kidwainagar, Lal Bangla, Karrahi, Jajmau, Shastrinagar, Chakeri, Shyam Nagar and Civil Lines which have been lying uncovered after the agencies removed the covers to clean up the silt, have turned into virtual death traps.
“It seems that the authorities area waiting for another tragedy like the death of Manish to happen before it covers the holes on the main stretch leading to Lal Bangla area?” asked Vartika, a resident of Pokharpurwa.
Anand Gupta, a retired bank employee, had slipped into an uncovered manhole in the same area late on April 4 night while he had gone for a casual stroll after dinner. “I was on my way back home from night stroll when I fell into the open manhole and sustained injuries. Fortunately, with the help of other passersby, I managed to came out of the manhole,” he said.
Deepak Chaturvedi, an employee at a multi-national firm at Chunniganj area, said the workers of Jalkal Vibhag in Nagar Nigam had removed the slab of the manhole near Panki a few days back to clean up the drains, but had not put the cover back.
“Commuting on roads has become extremely difficult with uncovered manholes, particularly when there is darkness due to power cuts. It is really scary commuting through this stretch and if manholes are not covered, another tragedy might occur anytime,” he added.
Recalling Sunday late night mishap, Sneha, a university student, and a resident of Karrahi locality, said the authorities have refused to learn from its past mistakes.
Another resident Kavita, said, “There are points where the weak cement-concrete cover, though in a metal rim, cracks and breaks whenever a heavy vehicle passes over it. The broken parts of the cover fall into the manhole thus leaving it uncovered and prone to mishaps.”
A police official at Barra police station said that the incident could have been avoided if the concerned agency had erected a wall or put a barricade around the manhole.
After several such incidents, the district administration had issue directives to barricade and cover up all such spots in the city. Yet, Manish, had met tragic fate on Wednesday evening. However, agencies, including the KNN, are ready with arguments to defend the uncovered chambers, manholes and drains.
“Many a time, these manholes, drains or chambers were left uncovered because the cleaning of the silt was continuing and it is very difficult to remove the slab and cover it daily. However, we ensure, such spots be barricaded with wood and bamboo structure so that people do not fall into it,” said a KNN official.
When he was told that there are manholes which are not barricaded, the KNN official promised to look into the problem and initiate measures on priority.
Sources close to the KNN, however, said there are hundreds of such manholes and drains that are deep but even then no foolproof measures have been ensured. “The unfortunate part is that even the manhole where the child was killed, is still without lid or cover and none of the concerned agencies have ever bothered to give instruction to cover the same,” said a local.
Shamim Azad, a local corporator, asserted: “It’s the civic body’s lackadaisical attitude for which the locals are paying are heavy price. If KNN officials can’t ensure safety of city residents, they should be removed or sacked from their respective posts.”
“It is for the KNN authorities to see when and how the manholes are covered. I have raised the issue of missing lids in my ward in the House meeting many times, but it has always been ignored,” said Azad.
Much in the same vein, Ashok Kumar, another local, said: “It’s very unfortunate that even after Wednesday evening mishap, the district administration has not bothered to take stock of the situation. Serious action must be taken against the authorities responsible for the situation.”
Due to absence of street lights, the open manholes are not visible to pedestrians at night, he added.
Contacted, assistant municipal commissioner Vinod Gupta said: “All the zonal in-charges have been instructed to identify such spots and ensure that all open chambers, manholes and drains are covered with immediate effect.”