Bhopal:
A new bridge built over the Wainganga River in the Seoni district, about 350 km from Bhopal, collapsed today, August 30, 2020, its official completion date. Although its construction was completed a month ahead of schedule, the 150-meter bridge had not even been inaugurated. However, the villagers had started using the structure.
The before and after videos show that a large part of the bridge collapsed and pillars can be seen sticking out of the swollen river.
According to official documents, the bridge was built at a cost of Rs 3.7 crore under the Prime Minister’s rural road network scheme, PMGSY. Its construction began on September 1, 2018 and was scheduled to be completed before August 30, 2020.
District collector Rahul Haridas has ordered an investigation to determine guilt, saying that due action will be taken against the culprits.
For now, the collapse of this key bridge has affected connectivity between the villages of Sunwara and Bhimgarh de Seoni, which belong to the constituency of BJP lawmaker Rakesh Pal Singh.
Continued rains have caused widespread destruction in Madhya Pradesh, especially in the Narmada River belt, where a flood-like situation has emerged. Following heavy rains, the Narmada River flows about 10 meters above its 964-meter danger mark in the Hoshangabad district near Bhopal.
In the state capital, the famous Chirayu Hospital, a Covid-only care facility, was flooded when Upper Lake overflowed.
120 of the 251 reservoirs in the state are full, requiring dam gates to be opened to let excess water out. Overall, the state has received 815.2mm of rain as of Saturday morning against the expected rain of 743mm.
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