A bridge constructed across Burhi Gandak River in Bihar snapped into two on Sunday morning. Nobody was injured in the incident, which occurred just weeks after the Morbi bridge tragedy.
The bridge in Begusarai district had not yet been inaugurated. According to the Times of India, cracks were spotted between two of its pillars on Thursday. Local authorities inspected the bridge and stopped the movement of people from both sides using barricades.
A technical team was sent by SDO Rohit Kumar to check the bridge on Saturday. However, the bridge collapsed into the river before any steps could be taken to repair the cracks.
Visuals shared by news agency ANI show a portion of the bridge lying in water.
A local contractor had constructed the bridge nearly five years ago. Although the bridge was not formally open to the public, people had still been using it, said senior district officer Roshan Kushwaha to NDTV. The movement of vehicles on the bridge was prohibited.
The bridge had been constructed to connect the Bishnupur-Ahok diara areas of Sahebpur Kamal block to NH: 31. Its collapse will affect farmers, students and people who need medical care as their access will be further limited.
"The bridge was temporarily shut for use. We're assessing the reason behind the bridge collapse... Whether it is a technical flaw or otherwise, we are examining it," said Kushwaha.
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