Authorities of trouble-torn Daman today suspended the executive engineer of Public Works Department (PWD) in connection with the bridge collapse that killed 29 people, mostly schoolchildren, even as prohibitory orders continued in the Union Territory.Daman administrator Arun Mathur today visited Navi Daman, where most victims hailed from. People complained that there was a lapse by the PWD in maintaining the bridge that led to its collapse.Mathur said he had suspended Bharat Gupta, PWD executive engineer, holding charge of the office of superintendent engineer, pending an inquiry to be conducted by a Central government agency from outside Daman to maintain transparency and fairness. The inquiry would be conducted within a month and determine whether there were any lapses or breach in repairs undertaken by PWD.Police registered an FIR accusing PWD officials of not properly maintaining the bridge connecting Navi Daman and Moti Daman. The Centre has already announced a high-level probe into the incident.
