New visuals show wreckage of collapsed bihar bridge in ganga one guard reported 'missing'

New visuals show wreckage of collapsed bihar bridge in ganga one guard reported 'missing'

The bridge was supposed to connect Khagaria district with Bhagalpur, incurred a cost of more than ₹1,700 crore.

The latest video on Monday captured the collapse of Bihar's under-construction Aguwani-Sultanganj bridge, showing the wreckage immersed in the waters of the river Ganga. State government officials have attributed Sunday's collapse to ‘design flaws’ and revealed that portions of the bridge were ‘deliberately destroyed’ under expert advice. The bridge, intended to connect Khagaria district with Bhagalpur, incurred a cost of more than Rs. 1,700 crore. This is the second time the bridge has collapsed, with a previous incident occurring on April 30 last year.

A video shared by news agency ANI showed the aftermath of the collapse, with the collapsed portion visible above the water, and onlookers witnessing the scene from the riverbank. Additional footage, seemingly captured from a boat, offers closer views of the collapsed structure.

The moment of the bridge's collapse in the Ganga River was captured on video by local residents.

In response to the incident, Bihar chief minister Nitish Kumar has instructed the Building Construction Department's additional chief secretary, Pratyaya Amrit, to establish an enquiry committee to thoroughly investigate the matter and take strict action against those responsible.

The foundation for the bridge was laid by Nitish Kumar in 2014, and it was originally scheduled to be inaugurated in 2019.

Guard reported missing in Bhagalpur bridge collapse

In the aftermath of the bridge collapse in Bhagalpur, it has been reported that a person working as a guard with SP Singla Company is missing, news agency ANI quoted circle officer of Parbatta as saying on Monday.

Despite earlier statements by the government claiming no casualties, the officer said, “Guard's body has not yet been found. Search operations led by SDRF (State Disaster Response Force) and NDRF (National Disaster Response Force) teams are currently underway to locate the missing individual.” The confirmation of the guard's death can only be made upon the recovery of his body, the officer added.

In a reminiscent incident from last year, a portion of a bridge spanning the Burhi Gandak River in Sahebpur Kamal, Bihar's Begusarai district, collapsed and plunged into the river. No casualties were reported in the incident.