Journalism of Courage
Two dead as bridge fails to carry weight of four trucks loaded with cement
A vital bridge,constructed just a year ago on the strategic all-weather road for connectivity to Indo-Tibet (China) border,collapsed late on Wednesday night when four trucks loaded with cement were parked on it. Built by the Border Roads Organisations (BRO) under its Deepak Project near Basantpur in Shimla district,the road is a vital link for the Army to access the Indo-Tibet border at Kaurick in Kinnaur district and also for the transport of apple from Kinnaur and some parts of Shimla district.
The traffic from this road has now been diverted to the alternate route National Highway-22 via Narkanda to Rampur (also known as old Hindustan-Tibet road).
The bridge was on the Nauti Khud rivulet.
Two men sitting inside the trucks at the time of the accident died on the spot,while two others sustained serious injuries.
The body of one of the deceased was yet to be taken out from under the collapsed bridge and trucks till the filing of this report. On their way to Rampur,the truck drivers had stopped on the Basantpur-Kingal stretch of old Hindustan-Tibet Road for dinner.
Shimla Superintendent of Police R M Sharma said a case had been registered against the truck drivers under Sections 336,337 and 304 (a) of the IPC for negligence,causing death.
If further investigation reveals any carelessness on part of the contractor concerned and officials in-charge of building the bridge,action will be taken accordingly, he said.
The BRO is,meanwhile,in the process of initiating an inquiry into the bridge collapse.
S S Pathania,Colonel (Works) at Deepak Project Headquarter in Shimla,said: The bridge was constructed in August 2009. The BRO headquarters in New Delhi is likely to soon order an inquiry into the incident and send a technical team to examine the design and check composition of the material used in its construction. We will put up a bailey bridge within the next two days to restore traffic on the route.
He said the bridge was classified as Road Class 7 that could bear weight up to 70 tonnes. It is quite possible that the trucks parked on it were heavier than this. However,the actual causes of the collapse would only be revealed after the inquiry, said Colonel Pathania.
Two years ago,a bridge constructed by the public works department had collapsed near Bhuntar in Kullu when heavy machinery was being transported to the site of Parbati hydro power project.
The PWD had booked the project authorities and charged compensation for the damage.
