Portion Of Bridge Over Ganga Collapses In Bihar's Bhagalpur, Probe Ordered

A part of a key bridge over the Ganga river collapsed in Bihar's Bhagalpur district early Monday, developing a wide gap in the middle of the structure and prompting the authorities to order an investigation, officials said.

No casualty was reported in the incident that stopped traffic movement on the 4.7-kilometre-long Vikramshila Setu, which connects Bhagalpur and Naugachia in the district.

The authorities have arranged steamers and boats to ferry people from one side of the river to the other following the incident.

Opposition parties alleged that the collapse of a portion of the bridge proves corruption in the BJP-led government, and accused the authorities of neglecting the health of the bridge, which was built in 2001.

Bhagalpur District Magistrate Nawal Kishor Choudhary said, "Around 12:50 am, a gap was formed near pillar number 133 of the Vikramshila Setu. Shortly after that, a major slab fell into the river." There is no information about any vehicle falling with the slab or casualties, he said.

"As soon as officials received information about the gap between the two slabs, they acted promptly to remove all vehicles and people from the spot," the DM said.

Stating that traffic is blocked on both sides of the bridge, he urged people to take an alternate route via Munger.

Bihar State Bridge Construction Corporation (BSBCC) Chairman Chandrashekhar Singh said that Chief Minister Samrat Choudhary has spoken with the Defence Minister and the Army chief to ensure alternative arrangements for people with the help of Border Road Organisation and the army setup.

Meanwhile, arrangements for boats and steamers have been made to ensure transportation of people and small vehicles, and a target has been set for repair of the bridge within three months, he said.

"In the long term, considering high traffic pressure on Vikramshila Setu, a parallel four-lane bridge is being constructed, which will be completed by December this year," said the BSBCC chairman.

On the probable causes behind the accident, Bhagalpur DM said, "An expert engineering committee has been notified, which will investigate the incident." Asked whether there was damage to the protection wall near the collapsed portion, Choudhary said this could only be ascertained after a proper inspection.

In March this year, a video clip surfaced on social media showing the bridge's protection walls in a deteriorated state. The then Road Construction Minister Dilip Kumar Jaiswal had said that the degraded backwall would soon be reconstructed.

"About a month ago, following reports of deterioration of a protection wall, we sent a team there, which confirmed the damage to a false wall but maintained that the pillar was fine. Based on the report, we prepared a detailed project report (DPR) for maintenance, which is currently in the approval process," Singh said.

Meanwhile, Leader of Opposition in the Bihar legislative assembly, Tejashwi Yadav, said that the collapse of Vikramshila Setu is a "proof of corruption" under the NDA government.

"Credit to the corrupt NDA government in Bihar, the Vikramshila bridge in Bhagalpur has taken samadhi in the Ganga river. Does one need any more direct proof of corruption than this? Last month, we had warned the government that this bridge could collapse, but as usual, the government washed its hands of it and defended its corrupt system." Yadav wrote in his X post.

The RJD leader claimed that in the last two years, more than 100 bridges and culverts have collapsed in Bihar, putting the state at the top of the corruption chart.

State Congress president Rajesh Ram said that the state government has "utterly failed" in fulfilling its responsibility in maintaining the bridge.

"This crucial bridge was damaged because of a lack of vigilance and maintenance, affecting the commute of lakhs of people," he said.

Ram alleged that under the guise of developmental works, corruption is happening on a large scale in the state. 

(This story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)