KARACHI: In another incident that exposes the negligence of the authorities and the unsafe infrastructure of the city, an elderly man died after falling into an uncovered drain in Korangi, police and rescuers said on Wednesday.

Residents said the drain had no protective wall or barriers, which led to the fatal accident.

They said that 70-year-old Kalay Khan was returning home on his bicycle on Tuesday evening when he slipped and fell into the open drain. Area residents said that the absence of streetlights in the area resulted in extremely poor visibility at the time.

“When he failed to return home, his sons began searching for him. In the wee hours of Wednesday, they finally found his bicycle lying along the drain near the Kabaddi Ground in Korangi No 3. Upon further inspection, they discovered his body inside the drain. The deceased was a resident of Zaman Town, Sector 34/3,” said an official.

The CCTV footage of the incident, which later surfaced on social media, showed the elderly man walking along the roadside with his bicycle moments before he suddenly fell into the drain.

The residents blamed the tragedy on the negligence of civic authorities, stating that several drains in the locality remain uncovered despite repeated complaints to the concerned departments. They also pointed out that criminal activity in the area keeps the road deserted at night, further increasing the risk for pedestrians.

Residents alleged that ahead of a recent visit by the Sindh chief minister to a nearby school, the drain had been temporarily barricaded.

Published in Dawn, December 18th, 2025