45-year-old electrocuted in Delhi, 7th incident this monsoon

45-year-old man electrocuted in north Delhi, taking monsoon toll to 7. Illegal electricity connection from pole caused the tragedy. Authorities investigating.

A 45-year-old man was electrocuted on Wednesday morning at his home in Sadar Bazar, north Delhi, police said. The incident takes the electrocution toll to seven this monsoon.

The area near the house was waterlogged due to rain on Wednesday. (Representational image)

Deputy commissioner of police (north) Manoj Kumar Meena said the deceased was identified as Pramod Kumar alias Rakesh, a resident of the slum area in Sherawali Market. Legal action was taken in the matter, he added.

A preliminary inquiry revealed that Kumar was home with his mother Shyampari when the incident happened. “Kumar and his mother used to run a small eatery outside their house. They had an illegal electricity connection, which they had taken from an electricity pole by installing a wire,” said an investigator aware of the case.

The area near the house was waterlogged due to rain on Wednesday. Kumar came in contact with a live wire next to the house when he stepped out, which killed him on the spot.

Police said that their control room received a call at 8am regarding the incident. A case was registered under section 106 (1) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita.

At least seven people have been electrocuted in the Capital since the monsoon began this year. On Monday, a UPSC aspirant, Nilesh Rai, 26, died after he slipped on a waterlogged street and grabbed an iron gate for support. He was electrocuted because of an exposed motor wire that was touching the gate.

On Wednesday, a 30-year-old worker died in Karawal Nagar around 12.30pm while working at a construction site on July 20; and a head constable succumbed on July 13 after he was electrocuted while investigating a theft case in Najafgarh. While some of these deaths were due to waterlogging, some were just victims coming in contact with live wires.

Spot check

As reported earlier, during a spot check on Wednesday, HT found that mangles of loose wires were seen sticking out of electricity poles in many areas like Minto Road, DDU Marg, New Friends Colony, West Patel Nagar, Rani Bagh, and Shakarpur. A civic official said the problem gets exacerbated during monsoon, especially in unauthorised colonies.

A BSES spokesperson had also said the discom carries out routine drives in the city but these measures have little to no effect. A combination of factors — including unauthorised connections, power leakage, and improper fittings, combined with a dated drainage system that leads to waterlogging makes for a lethal combination during the monsoon.