NEW DELHI: What began as a routine evening patrol on Sunday for two beat officers in upscale Patel Nagar turned into a race against time that saved a young man’s life. Head Constable Yogesh and Constable Ajay were patrolling the area around 7pm when a woman’s screams shattered the calm.At first, the source of the cries was unclear. The officers followed the sound through the lanes and reached a five-storey house, where they found a visibly-disoriented woman at the entrance. Struggling to speak, she only managed to tell the duo that 26-year-old son had locked himself inside a room and was attempting to end his life.Sensing the urgency, the two officers ran up three flights of stairs. “The house had three rooms, and the woman was too shaken to guide us clearly.

After repeated attempts, we forced open a locked door. Inside, we found the young man hanging from a ceiling fan, using a bedsheet as a noose. He was already unconscious, and it seemed he would not survive for more than a few seconds,” recalled Head Constable Yogesh.Ajay ran and lifted the man’s legs and held him up to take the pressure off his neck. Yogesh rushed to the kitchen, grabbed the first sharp object he could see — a kitchen knife — and began cutting through the bedsheet.

The two finally managed to bring him down alive. By now, family members and colony security guards had started to gather.The man was unable to stand or speak. Constable Ajay made him sit upright, gave him water, and sprinkled some on his face in an attempt to revive him. “Even a delay of a few more seconds could have proved fatal, he was barely breathing,” he said.As the situation stabilised slightly and her son was rushed to hospital, the woman told the cops that the family was under severe stress due to an ongoing property dispute. She also shared that her husband had died of a heart attack only a year ago — a loss that had deeply affected her son. The man was discharged from the hospital late Sunday night.DCP (central) Nidhin Valsan commended the officers’ presence of mind and said that they will also be suitably rewarded. Family members speaking to TOI expressed their gratitude towards the policemen.