Bridge in Bihar collapses within one month of inauguration

A piece of the Sattarghat bridge in Bihar’s Gopalganj district collapsed on Wednesday.

A fragment of the Sattarghat bridge situated in the Gopalganj district of Bihar, collapsed on Wednesday. The bridge has been built on Gandak river in the state of Bihar. The bridge reportedly collapsed due to an increase in the water flow in the river as a result of heavy rainfall in the area. 

The Sattaghat bridge was inaugurated on June 16, 2020 by the Chief Minister of the state, Nitish Kumar. The total amount of money deployed in the construction of the bridge was Rs. 263.47 crores. The bridge was planned so as to reduce the travelling distance between the districts of Gopalganj, Champaran, Siwan and Saran. 

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According to Times Now, the Bihar Road Construction Minister, Nand Kishore Yadav, stated that “the approach slab which is located 2 kms away from the bridge has collapsed”. He affirmed that the bridge is in a healthy condition. However, the approach slab before the bridge has been damaged.

He also told NDTV that an inquiry has been initiated to find out the reason behind this collapse of the approach slab. 

The news platform also reported that the channel connecting the bridge to the road, could not hold the pressure of the rising water level which also had a high pressure. They also stated that the areas around the bridge are under flood waters. 

A team of government officials and engineers went to the sight to assess the damages. However, a full fledged report would only ascertain the real cause of the damage to a bridge which was completed just a month ago.