Another bridge collapses in Bihar, 10th such incident in over 15 days

PATNA: Bihar has witnessed its 10th bridge collapse in just over two weeks, officials reported on Thursday. The latest incident occurred in Saran, where two other bridge collapses had been reported in the last 24 hours. No casualties were reported from this latest collapse of a 15-year-old bridge over the Gandaki river, which connected several villages in Saran with Siwan district.
"A high-level probe has been ordered to find out the reason for the collapse of these small bridges in the district," Saran District Magistrate Aman Samir said. He added that he was headed to the site while several other district administration officials had already reached the location. The exact cause of the collapse remains unknown, but recent desilting work and heavy rainfall in the area may have contributed.
On Wednesday, two small bridges collapsed in the Saran district one in Janta Bazar and another in Lahladpur. This series of incidents has raised concerns about the structural integrity of older bridges in the state.
Read also: 9 fall in 15 days: 3 more bridges collapse in Bihar, Nitish Kumar holds meeting
"The small bridge was constructed 15 years ago. I am going to the spot. Several other officials of the district administration have already reached there. The exact cause of the bridge collapse is yet to be ascertained but desilting work was recently undertaken," said Samir.
Locals in the area noted that heavy rainfall over the past few days might have weakened these structures, leading to the collapses. Alongside Saran, other districts, including Siwan, Madhubani, Araria, East Champaran, and Kishanganj, have also reported similar incidents, making it a total of 10 bridges collapsing in 16 days.
Read also: Seventh bridge collapses in Bihar in 15 days
The spate of collapses comes just a day after Chief Minister Nitish Kumar ordered a survey of all old bridges in the state. He directed the road construction and rural works departments to identify bridges that need immediate repairs. The Chief Minister had chaired a meeting to review maintenance policies, during which he emphasized the importance of timely repairs to prevent further collapses.
"The CM had on Wednesday chaired a meeting to review the maintenance policies and said the road construction department has already prepared its bridge maintenance policy, and the rural works department should immediately chalk out its plan at the earliest," Samir added.