2 min readBengaluruMar 1, 2026 09:54 AM IST
A routine pre-summer cleaning of an unused rainwater harvesting pit near a house resulted in three fatalities in Bengaluru’s Whitefield Saturday evening, including a young food delivery agent whose wife is expecting their first child next week.
The deceased were identified as house owner Muniswamappa, 67, plumber Rudrakumar, 40, and food delivery agent Vishwanath Achari, 27. The incident occurred near the Immadihalli temple circle within the Whitefield police station limits.
According to the police, Muniswamappa and Rudrakumar were cleaning the pit using chemical agents. But when neither responded to calls from family members, Achari, a neighbour and a food delivery agent, was asked to check on them, and he too never came out.
Then, Aravind, another neighbour, called the police emergency helpline. A Hoysala patrol vehicle arrived, and an officer, using an oxygen mask from the vehicle, entered the sump and found all three lying motionless. They were pulled out and rushed to nearby hospitals, but were declared dead on arrival.
A police officer said, “preliminary investigation suggests the trio succumbed to toxic fumes from the chemical agents used inside the enclosed structure. It looks like the harvesting pit was not cleaned for many years, and none of those who entered the pit was wearing or having any safety equipment.”
Muniswamappa was a retired employee of a private company. Achari, who got married last year, was days away from becoming a father, as his wife is due next week.
The police have registered a case of unnatural death, and a probe is underway.
