60-year-old dies by falling into manhole in Dombivli

The enraged residents held the Maharashtra Industrial Development Corporation (MIDC) responsible for the incident, claiming that no action was taken by the authority despite multiple complaints about open manholes in the area

THANE: A 60-year-old man died after falling into a manhole on the Kalyan-Shil road in Dombivli East on Sunday evening. The enraged residents held the Maharashtra Industrial Development Corporation (MIDC) responsible for the incident, claiming that no action was taken by the authority despite multiple complaints about open manholes in the area. “It seems like someone has stolen the lid,” said an official from MIDC.

60-year-old dies by falling into manhole in Dombivli

The incident occurred in the afternoon on Sunday when the victim, Babu Dharma Chavan, was walking on the Kalyan-Shil road, slipped, and fell into an open manhole. The deceased’s son, Pravin Chavan, said, “I received a call from a passerby informing us about the incident. I rushed to the spot, pulled my father out of the manhole, cleaned him up, and took him to the hospital, where he succumbed to his injuries. There was water and mud on the road near the manhole. He must have slipped. This is a case of negligence by the officials.”

The residents of Dombivli gathered outside the hospital on Sunday evening and protested, demanding justice. They claimed that despite multiple complaints and follow-ups regarding open manholes in the area for a long time, no action was taken by the authorities. The family of the deceased said that they would not accept the body until action was taken. “Today we lost our father. We don’t want another family to suffer the same fate. We want justice,” said the deceased’s sons, Pravin and Kashinath.

Former Deputy Mayor of Kalyan-Dombivli and BJP leader Moreshwar Bhoir held the MIDC responsible and demanded that a case of culpable homicide be registered against the authority. “This isn’t just an accident. The MIDC’s negligence has cost a life,” Bhoir said.

When approached for a comment, an officer from MIDC’s water department said, “We open this manhole lid twice a day, once in the morning and once in the evening, to operate the water pipe valve. The lid was in place when our employee last opened it. It seems like someone has stolen the lid. We will review CCTV footage to confirm this.”