Dug up & never filled: Open pits turn deadly in Greater Noida

Noida: Pits dug to lay cables, sewer lines or water pipes, and left open for weeks, often stretching into months, have become a grave public safety hazard, underscored by the drowning of a three-year-old in a waterlogged pit in Dalelgarh village, days after software professional Yuvraj Mehta died in a flooded trench in Noida's Sector 150.Across multiple sectors, including Beta 1, Beta 2, Xu 1, Alpha and Delta, residents have blamed poor coordination and lax enforcement by the Greater Noida Industrial Development Authority for open pits and uncovered drains. Residents said a cow fell into an open drain in Sector Beta 2 last week, adding to fears that the next accident could involve a human.
"Are they waiting for a major accident to happen? These pits and open drains are a daily threat to residents, vehicles, and even livestock," said Harinder Bhati, RWA general secretary of Sector Beta 1. He claimed two pits have been left open in the area. One of them was by a mobile service provider in the green belt of Sector Beta 2, where a cow fell last Friday. While the animal was rescued, residents say such near-misses rarely lead to sustained action. Another was dug by Noida Power Company Limited (NPCL) and left open for the past 15 days, Bhati said. Responding to the complaint, an NPCL spokesperson said the excavation was part of cable installation work and was scheduled to be filled. The official cited a local community event for the delay in repairs and said the contractor had now been instructed to close the pit. Locals, however, remain sceptical as similar assurances have followed earlier complaints.Residents have also highlighted unattended open drains in Sector Xu 1 and similar hazards in Phi 3 and Delta, as well as Noida sectors 40, 34 and 107. Several RWAs have written to senior officials, including the district magistrate and local MPs and MLAs, calling for a comprehensive survey of unsafe pits and drains, and immediate steps to cover or barricade them, add reflectors and ensure proper lighting."We send photos and videos regularly, but officials usually act only after an accident," said Sangeeta Sharma, president of the Beta 1 RWA.