Indore’s 75-year-old Shastri Bridge has become a victim of an unusual enemy, rats. A large section of the bridge caved in on Sunday after rodents burrowed through its base, weakening the structure and creating a 5x6-foot pit. The damage will now cost the civic body nearly Rs 75 lakh to repair.
The cave-in occurred near the Punjab National Bank stretch of the bridge. Notably, traffic was light at the time, and no one was injured. Officials later confirmed that if the incident had taken place during rush hour, it could have led to a serious accident. The police quickly blocked the area and diverted vehicles to alternate routes.
When a team from the Indore Municipal Corporation (IMC) arrived for routine maintenance work, they found that rats had dug deep tunnels beneath the bridge, hollowing out the soil and concrete.
The loose ground gave way, resulting in the crater. The IMC engineers on Monday, along with experts from Shri Govindram Seksaria Institute of Technology and Science (SGSITS) and the Public Works Department (PWD), carried out emergency repairs and filled the pit.
However, they discovered over 20 rat burrows under the bridge, which was built nearly seven decades ago. PWD in-charge Rajendra Rathore said that the damaged portion was supported by a 25-30-year-old slab that had already weakened with age. “The slab had decayed, and the rats made it worse by tunnelling through it,” he was quoted by NDTV as saying.
Rathore also mentioned that a tea stall earlier stood near the affected part of the bridge. Leftover food and offerings thrown around the area had attracted rodents. “The rats even entered the drainage holes of the bridge,” he said.
To prevent such incidents in the future, the civic body now plans to redesign the footpath and drainage system. This isn’t the first time rats have caused trouble at Shastri Bridge. Around ten months ago, more than 200 rat holes were found in the same structure. Despite this, no permanent preventive steps were taken.
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