LUCKNOW, July 14 -- Amid outrage over civic apathy and gaping holes in the rescue effort, the body of a 43-year-old daily wage painter, identified as Suresh, was found nearly 28 hours after he slipped into an uncovered and waterlogged drain in Lucknow's Thakurganj area at 7am on Saturday during heavy rainfall. The body was recovered at 11 am on Sunday close to Shantinagar intersection in the vicinity of IIM Road, nearly a kilometre from the spot of the incident by a local cattle owner, even as the victim's family and local people alleged that multiple complaints about the drain were ignored by the authorities while the risk to others remained hours after the tragedy. This is the second time in less than a year that an uncovered drain has claimed a life in the city. The victim's family and residents claimed that after calling off Saturday's search at 11 pm, the officials failed to resume operations on Sunday morning, leaving the work entirely to the family and locals until the body was found. In a clear sign that no lesson had been learnt, the drain remained clogged and filthy on Sunday, HT's re-visit to the site revealed. "Even after the tragedy, no preventive measures were taken until Sunday afternoon when the LMC came and tied ropes around the open drain," said Viju Soni, a resident. Renu, the wife of the deceased, has filed an FIR against local corporator CB Singh. The FIR mentioned that even after the corporator was informed multiple times about the broken drain covers, no action was taken by him. When asked, LMC chief engineer (Civil) Mahesh Verma said, "The depth of the drain was around 5 feet, but due to heavy rainfall and waterlogging, it may have increased. The man may have been swept along with the flow." The presence of heaps of garbage raised serious concerns about the LMC's pre-monsoon drain-cleaning operations, for which over Rs 15 crore had reportedly been allocated. The drain that had not been cleaned for months, according to Viju Soni. Residents said heavy waterlogging from the early morning rain concealed the missing slab of the drain, making it impossible for the man to see the danger ahead. Eyewitnesses said the drain carries waste water from thousands of homes and connects to the Sarkata nullah, passing through several areas. "The cover of the drain was missing for the past several months. On Saturday morning, the man left home for work and fell into the drain because waterlogging made it impossible to spot the open section," said Anurag Pandey, a former corporator of the area. Pandey, who visited the site, alleged that no senior LMC official was present when the body was recovered. "This is a clear failure of the civic body. The drainage system is broken, no cleaning was done, and not even a warning sign or barricade was placed at the uncovered drain," he said. Locals confirmed that no search teams arrived at the spot even by 8 am on Sunday. Residents and the victim's family began checking nearby stretches on their own. After several hours, the family received the information that the body had been found. Residents said the LMC outsourced the cleaning work to a private agency that failed to restore safety measures after completing the job. "We've been living with this hazard for months. Despite multiple complaints, no one fixed it. Now someone has died because of this negligence," a resident said. The family and locals had gathered on Saturday night demanding continuation of the search operation. The protest reportedly turned tense after 11 pm when officials decided to halt the operation due to rain. Suresh's wife, Renu, alleged that the police used force to disperse the protestors, injuring her and other family members. "We were only asking them to search for my husband. Instead, they beat us with sticks," Renu told Hindustan Times, holding back tears. Renu, who kept fainting after learning of her husband's death, said she wanted justice. "The police didn't find my husband. We did. The officials kept delaying. Now I'm left with children to feed, and no one to support us," she said. She demanded strict punishment for the contractor, LMC officials and local representatives who failed to act on time. Residents of Lodhi Purwa, where the victim lived, said that they had been submitting complaints regarding the dangerous stretch of the drain for over a year. "Neither the corporator nor any LMC official took the matter seriously," said Viju Soni. Another resident, Abhishek, said, "If they had covered the drain or even put up a temporary warning, this wouldn't have happened. Even after the incident, they waited till the body was found before acting. That shows how seriously they take people's lives." On Saturday, LMC chief engineer Mahesh Verma and mayor Sushma Kharkwal had reportedly declined to confirm whether Suresh had indeed fallen into the drain. However, on Sunday Verma claimed that action would be taken against the culprits but the mayor didn't visit the site of the incident till 3 pm on Sunday as she was reportedly busy due to a VIP visit to the state capital. A senior LMC official, on condition of anonymity, admitted that pre-monsoon inspections had failed to identify uncovered and waterlogged spots in several areas, including Thakurganj. A senior SDRF official said their team had expanded the search to Sarkata drain after initial rounds failed to yield results. "Due to the heavy rain and water flow, locating the body took longer than usual. But we acknowledge that coordination between departments needs improvement," he said. The tragedy has once again exposed the systemic failure of Lucknow's civic administration in handling monsoon preparedness. Despite repeated claims and allocations, uncovered drains, clogged nullahs, and waterlogging continue to pose threats to residents, especially in low-lying and older areas of the city. Earlier, on September 5 last year, a six-year-old girl Nasra fell into an uncovered drain in Mallahitola, Wazirganj. Her body was found near Bhaisakund Gomti Barrage, some 6-7 km away from the incident site, days after the tragic incident. Even at that time, locals had urged the authorities to cover the drain, reinstall safety nets, and enhance security around hazardous areas to protect lives but to no avail. The municipal corporation has appealed to the citizens that if they see any open drain or manhole anywhere, they should immediately inform the corporation on toll free number 1533, so that appropriate action can be taken on time....