Elderly man dies after falling into 15-ft drain pit in Yerawada; PMC to take back all works from contractor

An elderly man died after falling into a pit about 15 feet deep, dug for drainage work in Pune's Yerawada area. Following the incident, the Pune Municipal Corporation administration has begun action against the contractor concerned. A show-cause notice has been issued to the contractor. Municipal Commissioner Naval Kishore Ram said the contractor will be blacklisted and all the works he is handling will be taken back. A complaint has also been lodged with the police for registering a case.

According to the commissioner, the barricading around the pit at the spot was not strong. Fibre barricades had been put up there, so they could not provide full protection when the accident happened. He said the contractor's work was progressing quickly as per the set target, but the lapse in safety arrangements was serious. The commissioner said plainly that had there been strong barricading, the elderly man's life could have been saved.

Blacklisting of a contractor is usually limited to a single project. In this case, the corporation has decided to take back all the works he is handling. The commissioner said that before any action, the contractor will be given a show-cause notice and a chance to put forth his side. A further decision will follow as per rules.

The corporation is now gathering information on how many works this contractor has under way in the city. Drainage and other infrastructure works are under way at several places in the city. Ram said the officials concerned will be directed to be more vigilant about safety arrangements. A new standard operating procedure will be framed on the basis of the lapses that emerge in the inquiry.

After the accident, the elderly man had been admitted to Rajiv Gandhi Hospital. The commissioner said it also needs to be probed under what circumstances he was discharged from the hospital and how he died the same night. The police have been asked to look into this. Whether the vehicle driver or the deceased was at fault in the accident will be examined in the police investigation. But the commissioner made it clear that the lapses in safety arrangements at the drainage work site cannot be ignored.

Meanwhile, a controversy has arisen over the Mayor's reaction. The question of the city's safety has heated up after the elderly man's death in a pit dug for the corporation's sewerage line work in Yerawada. When a journalist sought her reaction to the incident, Pune Mayor Manjusha Nagpure instead responded with questions: "Am I the contractor? Did I push that man? Was I driving the vehicle?" She is being criticised for shrugging off responsibility. The controversy over the Mayor's response has grown after a recording of the conversation spread on social media.