A man fell into an open drain near the Satellite Bus Stand in Bareilly on Tuesday night, prompting a large-scale rescue operation by multiple agencies. Despite continuous efforts by teams from the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) and State Disaster Response Force (SDRF), no trace of the missing individual has been found even after more than 18 hours.
According to officials, the incident took place at around 9:30 pm near the Roadways bus stand. Police received information through the Satellite police outpost that a man had fallen into a deep drain. Inspector Dhananjay Pandey of Baradari police station said that upon reaching the spot, CCTV footage was examined, which confirmed the incident.
Preliminary findings suggest that the man may have been under the influence of alcohol at the time. “His movements in the footage indicate possible intoxication, and he appears to have accidentally slipped through a small open gap and fallen into the deep drain,” municipal commissioner Sanjeev Kumar Maurya said.
Local shopkeepers alleged that the drain had been left uncovered after municipal sanitation workers removed its slab during a cleaning drive ahead of Holi. Since then, it had not been properly sealed, raising serious concerns about civic negligence and public safety.
Rescue teams were deployed soon after the incident and continued search operations late into the night until around 12:30 am, but were unable to locate the man. The operation resumed early Wednesday morning with intensified efforts.
{{/usCountry}}Rescue teams were deployed soon after the incident and continued search operations late into the night until around 12:30 am, but were unable to locate the man. The operation resumed early Wednesday morning with intensified efforts.
{{/usCountry}}Heavy machinery was brought in from Rampur to break parts of the drain’s concrete covering, while pumps were used to drain out the water. However, the presence of large quantity of garbage inside the drain has significantly hampered rescue operations.
Senior officials, including the ADM (city), municipal commissioner and (CO) III Pankaj Srivastava, visited the site during the night to oversee the situation. “As of now, the identity of the individual remains unknown. Our first priority is to retrieve him from the drain. Identification and locating his family will follow,” said Srivastava.