15 engineers suspended after 12 bridges collapse in Bihar in 17 days

Patna: The government has taken major action after 12 bridges collapsed one after the other in 17 days in Bihar. 15 engineers have been suspended after the incidents of continuous collapse of bridges.

The Nitish Kumar-led state government has also ordered the reconstruction of new bridges. Additional Chief Secretary of the State Water Resources Department Chaitanya Prasad, while speaking to the media, said that 9 bridges have been reported damaged, out of which six are very old. Three others are under construction.

Initial investigations have revealed that engineers and contractors are involved in the bridge collapse. The engineers were neither aware of it nor were they reviewing it. 15 different engineers have been suspended in this case.

A petition has been filed regarding the incidents of bridge collapse in Bihar. The petition demands direction to the Bihar government to conduct a complete structural audit and constitute a high-level committee to identify weak bridges that are collapsing or need to be strengthened.

This application has been made in the context of the collapse of bridges in Bihar in the last 15 days. The petition states that Bihar is the most flood-affected state in the country. The collapse of the bridge has raised concerns about the safety and reliability of the infrastructure. The state government has blamed the contractors and engineers for the incidents of bridge collapse.

Petitioner's counsel Brajesh Singh said that it is a matter of grave concern that the flood affected area in Bihar is 68,800 sq km which is 73.06 per cent of the total geographical area. Therefore, such regular occurrence of bridge collapse in Bihar is very devastating as it endangers the lives of a large number of people.

Number of broken bridges in the country from 2012 to 2021