Bihar’s Deputy Chief Minister Samrat Chaudhary has assured people getting bridges constructed at the earliest after the failure of bridges within several districts, including Saran, East Champaran, Araria, Madhubani, Kishanganj, and Siwan. 10 of the bridges were brought down within a single fortnight, which raised questions regarding the soundness of the structures and the necessary precautions in place. Luckily, there have been no loss of lives in the described accidents.
“I am personally supervising a detailed inquiry into such incidents happening,” the deputy chief minister said, adding that through a series of news reports, “immediate directives have been given for various remedial actions.” Chaudhary also underlined his readiness to arrest those who oversaw or directed the construction of those bridges. “I will also ensure that a list is developed indicating the constructed projects and the time of construction and all the parties that have been involved,” he stated, noting that: “based on information received, these projects were carried out on the intervention of different MLAs while negligent officials will suffer the consequences.”
Earlier in the day, Leader of the Opposition in Bihar assembly and RJD leader Tejhswi Yadav condemned Chief Minister Nitish Kumar and PM Narendra Modi for their silence over the failure of a series of bridges. On social media in Hindi, Yadav asked, ‘Are they thinking what further method of this auspicious corruption would be like Jungle Raj?’
Of late, there is a growing public concern over the safety of bridges in Bihar especially during the onset and during heavy rain. As a result of this, a PIL has been filed by advocate Brajesh Singh, seeking the union and state governments to conduct a structural audit of all the bridges in Bihar.
At the governmental level, Chief Minister Nitish Kumar gave direction to the Road Construction Department (RCD) and Rural Works Department (RWD) to prepare the list of bridges that needed repairs urgently. This has come in the light of more attention being paid to contract compliance as well as calls for proper maintenance of infrastructure.
However, Union Minister Jitan Ram Manjhi even alleged that there could be a neoteric plot regarding increased incidences of collapsed bridges. It is a recent phenomenon that such mishaps were never reported in Bihar two months back, and now we are experiencing the collapses one after the other. This is proof of their agenda to defame the government, Manjhi said.
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