Several other poles at the New Delhi station have exposed wires

Several other electricity poles within the parking area were seen with protruding wires

Hours after a woman died of electrocution after accidentally coming into contact with a loose wire from a nearby electrical installation after stepping onto a flooded street at the New Delhi Railway Station on Sunday morning, several such death traps were still seen on the station premises during HT’s spot visit.

An open electric circuit breaker box at New delhi Railway Station on Sunday. (Raj K Raj/ HT Photo)

While the high-mast light which led to the woman’s death was found to be barricaded, several other electricity poles within the parking area were seen with protruding wires – a safety risk, which local cab and auto drivers said were flagged in the past too.

Open wires, as well as wires being laid for two steel signage poles for an auto-taxi prepaid booth, were seen barely a few metres away from the incident spot. Another set of exposed wires for two possible mobile reception towers, now fully erect, was also seen on the Paharganj side. Most poles HT saw in the parking lot after entering from Gate Number 1 of the station had protruding wires as well.

Rajender Nayak, a taxi operator, pointing to several such light poles that needed attention, said this was a tragedy waiting to happen.

“Some taxi drivers along with policemen had to remove the garbage from the drainage near the incident spot using bare hands and only then was the waterlogging cleared. Soon after the woman’s death, officials started cleaning other drainages apart from checking and fixing open wires and safety boxes of the poles,” Nayak said, adding that several such poles and wires were still a risk and needed immediate attention.

A porter at the station, on condition of anonymity, said there have been instances when the wires touched the pavement too. “Under normal circumstances, no one pays heed. This however becomes extra risky during the rain,” he added.

Northern Railway, when contacted, did not comment on the agency responsible for the maintenance of electricity poles and lights, or the additional exposed wires, and said that safety checks were still ongoing.

“We are taking safety precautions and checking other installations to avoid such an incident,” said Deepak Kumar, chief public relations officer, Northern Railway. Kumar added that a detailed inquiry will be conducted and those found guilty will be punished. “A system is also being set in place to ensure such incidents don’t happen in the future again,” he added.

Meanwhile, Delhi’s distribution companies (discom), like BSES and Tata Power, said they were carrying out safety checks and inspections across public places in Delhi, ahead of monsoon, with similar checks to continue in the coming weeks.

“Under the safety drive during monsoon, the company is ensuring timely maintenance, inspection, and checking of electrical leakage in over 130,000 electrical and street light poles, fencing, and pillar boxes. Besides this, safety inspections are being undertaken in weekly bazaars and uneven areas with potholes. The discom has proactively trimmed trees to avoid collapsing branches on electrical installations, poles, and overhead wires in certain areas of North Delhi,” said a Tata Power DDL spokesperson on Sunday.

It also issued an advisory, asking the public to stay away from waterlogged electrical installations such as poles, substations, transformers, and streetlights, to caution children from playing near such installations during monsoon.

“In case of sparking in meter rooms or light poles, customers can call our toll-free no.19124 for assistance,” Tata Power added in its advisory.

A BSES official meanwhile said, “We are geared up to ensure reliable power supply to our over 4,800,000 consumers and over 20 million residents while taking all safety measures that are required during the rains. Consumers can play a very important role in ensuring a safe monsoon by following simple safety guidelines,” the official said, adding during the monsoon, waterlogging, strong winds, uprooted trees and fallen branches were all challenges.