Under-construction bridge collapses in Bihar, no casualties reported

An under-construction bridge over the Ganga river collapsed in Bihar‘s Bhagalpur district on Sunday, prompting the state government to direct the building construction department to initiate an enquiry into the incident, an official said.No casualties were reported so far in the collapse of the Aguwani -Sultanganj bridge that connects Bhagalpur with Khagaria district, he said.

“The incident occurred when four-five pillars of the Aguwani-Sultanganj under-construction bridge collapsed into the Ganga river,” the official said.Talking to PTI, Bhagalpur District Magistrate Subrat Kumar Sen said, “Yes, I have received the information that 4-5 pillars of the Aguwani-Sultanganj under-construction bridge collapsed. The administration is in touch with officials of the department concerned.”

Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar directed the building construction department’s additional chief secretary Pratyaya Amrit to constitute an enquiry committee to investigate the matter and take strict action against the erring officials.State BJP president Samrat Choudhary said the incident shows that “corruption is rampant” under the rule of the Nitish Kumar-led Bihar government.”Sub-standard materials were used for the construction of the bridge. The CM is least bothered about the development of Bihar…he is busy on his tour. He must resign from his post after this incident.”

Notably, one labourer died and another was injured after a portion of an under-construction bridge collapsed in Nalanda district in November last year.