‘Papa, Mujhe Bacha Lo’: Father recalls techie son’s final hours in Noida tragedy

Dubai: As his son struggled to stay alive in a deep, water-filled ditch on a foggy Noida night, Rajkumar Mehta could do little more than listen to his desperate cries over the phone.

“Papa, mujhe bacha lo,” 27-year-old software engineer Yuvraj Mehta kept saying — words his father says will haunt him for the rest of his life.

Yuvraj died on Friday night after his car plunged into a 70-foot-deep ditch near Sector 150 in Noida, a stretch locals say has long lacked basic safety measures such as reflectors and warning signs.

A family already marked by loss

Yuvraj, originally from Sitamarhi in Bihar, worked as a software engineer with Dunnhumby in Gurugram. His mother died two years ago, and his sister lives in the UK. His father told NDTV that Yuvraj had worked relentlessly to clear his exams and build a stable career.

“He worked very hard to reach where he was,” Rajkumar Mehta said.

• WHAT WENT WRONG AT THE RESCUE SITE

• No trained water rescue personnel initially: Police arrived early but lacked swimmers or divers to enter the deep, water-filled ditch.

• Absence of specialised rescue equipment: Responders did not have ropes, harnesses, boats or cranes to extract the trapped victim.

• Delayed deployment of specialised teams: NDRF and diving units were brought in later, extending the rescue timeline.

• Poor visibility and site conditions: Dense fog and a steep, unmarked ditch hindered rescue efforts.

• Prolonged recovery time: The car and body were retrieved only after nearly five hours of operations.

Final calls and a desperate wait

On Friday evening, Rajkumar received a call and text from his son saying that his car had fallen into a ditch. He immediately rushed to the spot and alerted the police and fire brigade.

While emergency teams reached within about 15 minutes, the father said they lacked the equipment needed to pull his son out.

According to Rajkumar Mehta, Yuvraj remained trapped on the roof of the submerged car from around midnight until 2am, carefully balancing himself to prevent the vehicle from sinking. In the thick fog, he used his phone’s flashlight to signal his position.

“I tried everything in my power to save him,” the father told NDTV. “I was running around everywhere so that someone could come and take him out of there, but to no avail.”

Rescue came too late

A Flipkart delivery agent, Moninder, eventually entered the ditch in an attempt to rescue Yuvraj. By then, it was too late.

Yuvraj was taken to hospital, where he was declared dead. His body and the vehicle were pulled out of the ditch only after nearly five hours of rescue efforts involving police, divers and National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) teams.

How the accident happened

The crash occurred as Yuvraj was returning home from work. Due to dense fog and the absence of reflectors, his car struck a raised ridge separating two drainage basins and plunged into the water-filled ditch.

Passersby who heard his screams tried to help, but the car was fully submerged and unreachable.

Anger, protests and negligence claims

Mehta’s family has filed a complaint alleging negligence, saying authorities failed to install reflectors or cover the drains along the service road despite repeated warnings.

Knowledge Park Police Station in-charge Sarvesh Kumar said any negligence found would be investigated and legal action taken.

The incident has triggered public outrage, with local residents staging protests and shouting slogans against the authorities. Residents said they had repeatedly demanded safety measures on the road, but no action was taken.

Shortly after the tragedy, authorities filled the ditch with several tonnes of garbage and debris.

For Rajkumar Mehta, the move offers little comfort.

“I heard my son begging me to save him,” he said. “And I couldn’t.”