40-foot-tall power pole comes crashing down at Parthala roundabout in Noida

The Parthala roundabout witnesses heavy traffic during the peak hours as it connects Noida to Greater Noida West. Incidentally, the Noida authority is currently carrying out the construction of the Parthala flyover at the spot of the accident

A 40-foot-tall high-tension power transmission monopole fell on the road near the Parthala roundabout at Sector 123 in Noida on Tuesday afternoon.

(Sourced)

The Parthala roundabout witnesses heavy traffic during the peak hours as it connects Noida to Greater Noida West. Incidentally, the Noida authority is currently carrying out the construction of the Parthala flyover at the spot of the accident.

The monopole fell on a car, damaging its bonnet and windshield, officials said, adding that no one was injured in the incident.

According to the Noida authority, the incident took place around 2.45pm on the road leading to Kisan Chowk from the Parthala roundabout. “Around 2.45pm on Tuesday, a monopole fell on the road. The incident happened during the installation of a high-tension line by the Uttar Pradesh Power Transmission Corporation Limited (UPPTCL). A car was damaged and senior officials from the authority immediately reached the spot and the monopole was removed from the road with the help of a crane in order to resume the smooth flow of traffic. No one was injured during the mishap,” an official statement from the Noida authority stated.

Meanwhile, the Noida traffic police said that a caller informed them about the incident at 3.15pm on their helpline number.

“After receiving the information, four constables and a traffic sub-inspector were rushed to the spot. It was found that the pole fell on a car and the occupants of the vehicle had a lucky escape. Barricading was done around the spot where the tower fell,” said Ganesh Saha, DCP (traffic), Gautam Budh Nagar.

Saha added that while the traffic police personnel cleared the road and resumed smooth traffic, a bottleneck was formed on the spot. “Though the tower was removed from the middle of the road, it still took up a lot of space on the sidewalks, which created a bottleneck in the area. The spot witnesses heavy traffic and that is why traffic moved slowly for a few hours,” he said.

Police further mentioned that traffic from both sides of the road was disrupted for about a couple of hours and traffic police had to create a diversion.

“It could have resulted in a big mishap. We found the owner of the car standing along the roadside and she was unhurt. A couple of bikers also had a close shave,” a traffic inspector said.

An official of UPPTCL, who was at the spot when the monopole fell, said that the incident took place while they were installing wires.

“The wires are set up using tractors and pulled with force. While carrying out the installation work, the extra force led to the falling of the pole. We have given assurance to the car owner that we will bear the repair cost,” he said, requesting anonymity.