In a heartbreaking incident in Noida’s Sector 150, a 27-year-old software engineer named Yuvraj Mehta drowned early Saturday morning after his car fell into a nearly 70-foot-deep drain. The tragedy unfolded over approximately two hours, during which the victim repeatedly called for help while standing on the roof of his partially submerged vehicle. Despite the presence of his father and police personnel at the scene, rescue efforts failed to reach him in time.
Yuvraj Mehta, who worked for a private company based in Gurgaon, was driving home around 12:30 am when his car plunged into the drain. The incident occurred due to extremely low visibility caused by dense fog and a damaged boundary wall along the drain, as alleged by his father, Raj Mehta, in a complaint filed with the police. Yuvraj lived with his father at Tata Eureka Park in Sector 150 and was the sole breadwinner for the family following the loss of his mother two years earlier.
According to accounts from Yuvraj’s friend Pankaj Tokas, the victim managed to escape the submerged car and climb onto its roof. He contacted his father, who initially arrived at the wrong location but quickly reached the correct spot and alerted the authorities. Yuvraj, described as fit but unable to swim, continued pleading for help while on the phone with his father.
Pankaj Tokas alleged that arriving police officers did not enter the water, citing reasons such as not knowing how to swim, the cold temperature, and potential hazards like iron rods. A passerby named Moninder attempted to search the drain around 1:45 am but could not locate Yuvraj during a 30-minute effort. Cranes and ropes were summoned, but no immediate rescue from the water took place.
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Police officials stated that they received information via the Police Response Vehicle around 1 am and promptly reached the site. They informed the fire department and teams from the State Disaster Response Force (SDRF) and National Disaster Response Force (NDRF). However, the SDRF and NDRF teams reportedly arrived around 2:30 am and entered the water only by 3:20 am, by which point Yuvraj’s cries had stopped. The body was recovered around 6:30 am, and the car has yet to be retrieved.
Yuvraj’s father alleged in his complaint that local residents had previously urged the Noida Authority to install barricades and reflectors around the hazardous drain, but no action was taken. The Knowledge Park police station’s Station House Officer, Sarvesh Singh, noted that efforts were made to save the victim, but poor visibility hindered operations. No FIR has been registered, though a memorandum will be sent to the Noida Authority regarding the incident.
The Noida Authority General Manager A K Arora did not respond to inquiries about the matter.
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