Another Bridge Collapses in Bihar, 10th Such Incident in Over 2 Weeks

Patna: Another bridge collapse incident was reported in Bihar on Thursday, a day after a two bridges collapsed in different districts. As the bridge collapse spree continues in the state, the number of such incidents have gone up to 10 in just over a fortnight.

The latest incident was reported from Saran which witnessed two more bridge collapses in the last 24 hours, District Magistrate Aman Samir said. Fortunately, no casualties were reported after the 15-year-old bridge collapsed this morning. Altogether 10 bridges collapsed in Siwan, Saran, Madhubani, Araria, East Champaran and Kishanganj districts in the past 16 days, raising concerns over the quality of public infrastructure. 

The small bridge, developed by local authorities, over the Gandaki river was situated in the Baneyapur block. The bridge served as a link to connect several villages in Saran with the neighbouring Siwan district.

“The small bridge was constructed 15 years ago. I am going to the spot. Several other officials of the district administration have already reached there. The exact cause of the bridge collapse is yet to be ascertained but desilting work was recently undertaken," news agency PTI quoted the DM as saying. According to locals, heavy rainfall is being attributed to collapse of these small bridges in Saran district. 

Bridge Collapse in Saran

Saran district on Wednesday witnessed the collapse of two small bridges - one in Janta Bazar area and another in Lahladpur area. “A high-level probe has been ordered to find out the reason for the collapse of these small bridges in the district," the DM said.

Siwan Bridge Collapse

Another case of infrastructural failure was witnessed in Bihar’s Siwan on Wednesday, when a portion of a bridge over Gandaki river collapsed making it the seven such incident.

Madhubani Bridge Collapse

An under-construction bridge over the Bhootahi River between Madhubani and Supaul collapsed on June 28.  The 75-meter-long bridge, located in the Madhepur Block of Bheja police station, had been under construction since 2021 by the Rural Works Department (RWD) of the Bihar government. The estimated budget of the project was Rs 3 crore.

The latest incident comes a day after Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar instructed the road construction and rural works departments to conduct a survey of all old bridges in the state and identify those that require immediate repair. This was the 𝟓 th bridge to collapse in Bihar within 𝟗 days.

The CM had on Wednesday chaired a meeting to review the maintenance policies and said the road construction department has already prepared its bridge maintenance policy and the rural works department should immediately chalk out its plan at the earliest.

Araria Bridge Collapse

On June 19, a portion of an under-construction bridge fell in Araria. No casualties were reported in the incident. The bridge was being constructed at the cost of Rs 12 crore.

East Champaran Bridge Collapse

An under-construction small bridge collapsed in East Champaran district on June 23. There were no reports of any casualties in incident that happened in Ghorasahan block in Motihari.

Kishanganj Bridge Collapse

A 70-meter bridge bridge in Kishanganj district caved in on June 27. The bridge on a tributary of the Kankai river, served as a connectivity link between Bahadurganj and Dighalbank blocks and its collapse had affected the connectivity between the two towns. However, no one was injured in the incident.

PIL in SC Seeks Structural Audit

Meanwhile, in the wake of bridge collapses in the state, a petition has been moved in the Supreme Court seeking directions to the Bihar government to conduct the highest level structural audit of all existing and under construction bridges in the state and to demolish or retrofit weak structures depending of feasibility.