Noida: A 24-year-old auto-rickshaw driver was found dead beside a drain in Greater Noida’s Ecotech 3 area on Monday morning in a suspected hit-and-run involving an unidentified heavy vehicle, police said.The deceased, Pradeep Kumar, was a native of Etah district who lived with his family in Greater Noida.According to police, Kumar had left for work as usual but did not return home on Monday morning, prompting his family to begin searching for him.During the search, relatives found Kumar’s body lying near a drain along with his badly damaged auto-rickshaw a few metres before the Yamaha Cut in the Ecotech 3 area. Police were alerted through the emergency helpline number 112.A police team reached the spot and took custody of the body, which was later sent for post-mortem examination.Preliminary investigation suggests Kumar was returning home late Sunday night when an unidentified vehicle, suspected to be a heavy vehicle, hit his auto-rickshaw from behind. The impact is believed to have caused the vehicle to lose control and crash into a roadside tree.Police suspect Kumar sustained severe injuries in the collision but managed to step out of the damaged vehicle. He is believed to have walked a short distance towards the nearby drain before collapsing.Officials said the accident may have gone unnoticed as it occurred late at night in an isolated stretch with no CCTV cameras nearby.Based on a complaint by the family, police have registered a case and are trying to identify the vehicle and trace the driver.
