1-km Telangana bridge, under construction for 8 years, toppled by wind
Two concrete girders between two pillars supporting the kilometre-long bridge collapsed around 9.45 pm on Monday, when a strong gale blew in the area
A bridge that was being built for eight years in Telangana partially collapsed on Monday (April 22) night, apparently because of “strong wind”.
The bridge was being built across the Manair river, to connect Peddapalli and Bhupalpally districts. Two concrete girders between two pillars supporting the kilometre-long bridge collapsed around 9.45 pm on Monday, when a strong gale blew in the area.
Lucky escape
Tired of waiting for the bridge to be completed, the villagers laid a kutcha road under the bridge some five years back. Some 65 wedding guests, whose bus had passed the stretch only moments earlier, had a lucky escape, NDTV reported. No one was injured in the incident.
The bridge had reportedly been inaugurated way back in 2016, by the then Telangana Assembly Speaker S Madhusudhana Chary and local MLA Putta Madhu. Initially, Rs 49 crore was sanctioned for the bridge that was supposed to be completed in a year.
Contractor woes
However, in all these years, not even 60 per cent of the work was done, locals told NDTV. Reportedly, another Rs 11 crore was added to the estimated cost last year.
The contractor reportedly stopped the bridge construction within a year, alleging pressure for commissions and lack of payment by the government. Incidentally, this contractor had reportedly also built a bridge in Vemulawada which collapsed in heavy rain in 2021.
