On Tuesday afternoon, 42-year-old e-rickshaw driver Satish Kumar was on his way to work when he saw three line workers trapped inside a sewage line on Outer Delhi’s Main Bawana Road. Without thinking twice, he pulled over his vehicle and went inside the manhole to rescue them, only to lose his own life.
Kumar, who is survived by his 35-year-old wife Neha and three daughters, Tisha, 14, Kritika, 8, and Aarvi, 3, used to work as a gym trainer in Rohini till the gym shut down due to COVID-19.
He then started plying an e-rickshaw for a living and earned between ₹300 and ₹400 on a good day. Most of his earnings went into paying the monthly rent for his house and e-rickshaw.
When the lone breadwinner of his family took leave of his wife on Tuesday morning, neither of them had imagined that a Good Samaritan act of his would snatch him from his family forever.
One of Kumar’s friends, Paramjeet Singh said: “We were with him before he left to pick up passengers, but were not able to locate him later. After searching for him everywhere, we came to know that he had fallen inside a sewage line while rescuing a few trapped workers.”
Kumar alleged delay in response from the authorities to rescue those trapped. “The incident occurred at 6 p.m. but the excavator came only around 10 p.m.; if they had reached early, my friend could have been saved,” he added.
His friends recalled how Kumar had rescued two children when he saw them drowning in a river near his house last month.
They described him as a very helpful person who could not bear to see anyone in pain. Whenever it was about rescuing or assisting someone, Kumar was always at the forefront, willing to put his life at stake, they said. His friends hoped the family of this fearless man would be able to move on.
Kumar’s brother Krishan Singh wondered how his three daughters would cope with the tragedy. “His absence in the long run may impact them,” he worried.
An inconsolable Neha said: “He came back home at 3 p.m. and told me that he will be back by night after bringing ration… he never returned.”
“I’m illiterate and a housewife; he was the only person earning for us,” she added.
At the incident spot, one of the eyewitnesses recalled how Kumar stopped two boys from entering the sewage line to rescue the trapped workers and volunteered to enter the manhole himself.
