Lost File, Lost Life: Warning Letter Ignored Years Before Techie Drowned To Death In Noida

Three years prior, the UP Irrigation Department warned the Noida Authority about potential water accumulation and proposed installing head regulators.

Yuvraj Mehta died after his car plunged into a water-filled pit in Noida.

Source : PTI

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Three years before 27-year-old software engineer Yuvraj Mehta drowned after his car plunged into a water-filled pit in Noida’s Sector 150, the Uttar Pradesh Irrigation Department had flagged the danger in an official letter to the Noida Authority. The warning, which called for measures to prevent water accumulation at the site, never translated into action.

The letter was lost in bureaucratic files, officials said, and the proposed project was never taken up. Over time, water continued to collect in the pit, until disaster struck late on Friday night, claiming Mehta’s life and once again exposing how administrative neglect can have fatal consequences.

A Warning That Never Reached the Ground

According to a report by news agency PTI, the UP Irrigation Department had written to the Noida Authority in 2023, highlighting the need to install head regulators at the site. The regulators were meant to clear excess rainwater and drainage by channelising it into the Hindon river, thereby preventing stagnation.

A head regulator controls water flow and helps stop the build-up of excess silt in canals or drains. The letter also noted that budgetary provisions had already been made for the proposed work. However, the communication failed to move beyond paperwork. A Noida Authority official told PTI that he was not aware of any such letter.

Protests, Questions and Administrative Silence

Officials later said the water that had accumulated in the under-construction basement where Mehta’s car fell was not solely due to rainfall. It also included discharge from drains connected to nearby residential societies. Local residents, who staged protest marches following the incident, said the tragedy could have been avoided if the recommended head regulators had been installed, allowing water to drain instead of stagnate.

The episode has fuelled anger among residents, who argue that repeated warnings about the site’s vulnerability were ignored, despite the risks posed during the monsoon and periods of low visibility.

A Young Life Lost on the Way Home

Mehta was returning home to Tata Eureka Park in Sector 150 late on Friday after work in Gurugram. He was less than a kilometre away when he lost control of his Grand Vitara near the final turn leading to his residence, apparently due to poor visibility. The car overshot the road and plunged into a ditch filled with water.

Trapped inside, Mehta managed to call his father, Rajkumar Mehta, asking him to arrange help. His father immediately alerted the police. Rescue teams, including firefighters, rushed to the spot, but dense fog severely hampered the operation. Mehta had switched on his phone’s torch and continued to call for help, officials said, but the efforts came too late.