Giant crater appears on new Dehradun bridge, Cong says 'Rs 16 crore crumbled in 16 days'

New Delhi, July 28 (IANS) A newly inaugurated Rs 16 crore bridge at Nanda Ki Chowki over the Tons River in Dehradun sustained damage following overnight heavy rainfall, triggering questions over the quality of construction of the crucial link connecting Dehradun with Vikasnagar and neighbouring Himachal Pradesh. 

The bridge, which was inaugurated only a few days ago, developed a massive crater near its approach road after incessant rainfall, disrupting vehicular movement along the route.

The incident has prompted residents to question whether the newly constructed infrastructure was adequately designed to withstand Uttarakhand's annual monsoon, which is known for intense rainfall and flooding.

Amid concerns over the damage, Dehradun District Magistrate Ashish Chauhan clarified that the bridge structure itself had not suffered any damage and said restoration work on the affected approach road had already begun.

Speaking to IANS, Chauhan said, "In this regard, our 24x7 control room had already been activated, and reinforcement teams were deployed immediately. The bridge itself is intact. The damage has occurred to the approach road leading to the bridge, and restoration work is already underway. All the Chief Engineers and other officials are also on the scene and reviewing the restoration process."

Meanwhile, the Congress staged a protest over the damage to the bridge. Party leader Sangram Singh Pundir questioned "serious lapses" in the execution of the project and demanded accountability from the government.

Speaking to IANS, Pundir questioned how a newly inaugurated bridge could suffer such damage within days of its completion.

"This bridge had just been constructed, yet it collapsed within a mere sixteen days -- a massive failure. While the District Magistrate dismisses it as just a small section giving way, the reality is that all traffic movement here has come to a complete halt. In the past, whenever such incidents occurred, the concerned minister would immediately take moral responsibility and resign; today, we see nothing of the sort," he said.

The Congress leader further demanded an investigation into the construction of the project, alleging that the incident had raised serious concerns about the quality of work carried out.

"The very infrastructure that was meant to serve the public has been reduced to rubble. We raise this issue vehemently and demand a CBI inquiry into how a newly built bridge collapsed so quickly. It is deeply concerning that a bridge costing Rs 16 crore crumbled in just 16 days; this casts serious doubt on the government and the executing agencies," he said.

Pundir also accused local legislators of failing to take appropriate action and launched a sharp attack on Uttarakhand Public Works Department (PWD) Minister Satpal Maharaj, demanding answers regarding the execution of the project and the contractor responsible for the construction.

"This bridge falls within our constituency; five bridges have been built over the Tons River, yet they have remained dilapidated for nearly 20 years. What kind of flaws exist here? A bridge collapsing within 15 or 16 days warrants strict action against the contractor. We will launch a protest against the contractor," he added.

--IANS

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