A 20-year-old man who was pursuing his higher studies in the US died after driving his car into a drain in Delhi's Vasant Kunj area last week. The man, identified as Yashvendra, was the son of an Indian Army officer and was accompanied by a female friend at the time of the accident.
According to news agency PTI, the car Yashvendra was driving belonged to the friend who accompanied him, and plunged into a water-filled drain near a traffic signal in Nangal Dewat area. The car reportedly lost control at a sharp turn before the accident. While Yashvendra was killed in the accident, his friend sustained injuries.
The incident has sparked allegations of safety gaps and negligence in the area. According to an eyewitness, the absence of a protective safety wall made the stretch risky.
‘Saw the girl calling for help’
Recalling how the friend was calling for help after the accident, eyewitness Pradeep Sehrawat told PTI: “I was passing from there when I saw a girl trying to stop people for help. Police personnel were also there. I immediately asked the police personnel to call the fire department for the rescue work.”
He also recalled how attempts were made to save the 20-year-old, who was trapped in the driver's seat, but the water-filled drain's depth posed a problem. "One person was trapped inside the car on the driver's seat and was not able to move. Along with the police personnel, we even tried to reach him, but due to the depth of the water-filled area, we were unable to reach him," Sehrawat said.
{{/usCountry}}He also recalled how attempts were made to save the 20-year-old, who was trapped in the driver's seat, but the water-filled drain's depth posed a problem. "One person was trapped inside the car on the driver's seat and was not able to move. Along with the police personnel, we even tried to reach him, but due to the depth of the water-filled area, we were unable to reach him," Sehrawat said.
{{/usCountry}}The witness also voiced concerns over how the drain and the absence of a protective wall could lead to such incidents again, especially in the winter season when fog engulfs Delhi. "The government should cover the area or build safety walls so that such accidents can be avoided," he said.
‘Sewer water from Aerocity’
In another media interaction, the witness alleged that the water that fills up the drain is neither rainwater nor caused by a resident's house. "This is just the negligence of the DDA. There's a mafia here who brings sewer water from Aerocity and dumps it here. This isn't rainwater; it's not the water of any resident here, so that's what caused this accident," Pradeep told news agency ANI.
He also reportedly claimed that the water had made the road slippery, leading to the accident.
The incident comes months after a 27-year-old software engineer died after his car plunged into a water-filled pit of a construction site in Noida. The incident took place in January this year amid dense fog, and allegations of safety lapses had surfaced in that case as well.
Who was Yashvendra?
Yashvendra, 20, was the son of an Army officer and had been pursuing studies in the US. After the accident, Yashvendra sustained critical injuries and succumbed during treatment at a nearby hospital.
According to police, Yashvendra and the female passenger were students at the same educational institution in the US and had become friends while studying there.
Reports said that the duo had stayed at a friend's house the previous night and were heading towards the woman's residence on Friday morning when the accident took place.