The Majerhat Bridge collapsed yesterday at 4:45 P. M., leading to a Suo Moto case being registered. The Alipur Police Station registered the case against unknown people under Sections 304, 308, 427 and 34 of Indian Penal Code.
The Chief Minister of West Bengal Mamata Banerjee ordered the Committee Head Chief Secretary Malaya De to conduct a probe into the collapse.
The bridge collapse has led to the famous political strategy – the blame game. The State Urban Development Minister Firhad Hakim alleged the heavy construction by the City Metro Authority weakened the pillars of the bridge. The adverse effect of the incident will affect the ongoing Joka Esplanade Metro project which is 16.72 kilometers. It can be said that the project will be delayed for at least one and a half years.
The Eastern Railways asked the state-run Rail India Technical and Economic Services (RITES) Ltd., to probe the bridge collapse and examine the safety of railway operations. He further added, “Our Chief Bridge Engineer along with RITES team will be visiting the spot and it is a fact finding team. The collapsed bridge was not under the Eastern Railway, but it was a railway over bridge. That is why concerns are there.”
Meanwhile, early Wednesday morning, BJP MP Roopa Ganguly paid a visit to the site. She held the State Government responsible for the mishap alleging that the bridge was not maintained properly.
“The Majerhat incident took the life of 21 year old Soumendo Bag and left 27 other including three women injured. The search for the trapped people is still on,(sic.)” the police claimed.
The people residing in the Alipur area are having travel issues as most of the roads are diverted to different routes and tram services are also suspended.
Majerhat Bridge collapse is the third bridge collapse incident in Kolkata in the past five and a half years. After the under construction flyover collapsed and the Ultadanga bridge collapsed, this is the third one to happen in the city.
