Heavy Rain Causes Damage to Newly Opened Bridge in Dehradun
Bridge Damage in Dehradun Due to Heavy Rain
Dehradun, July 28 - In the Premnagar area of Dehradun, a bridge that was reopened for traffic just a fortnight ago has had its access road collapse due to heavy rainfall early Tuesday morning, halting all traffic. Officials provided this update.
According to the authorities, upon learning of the road's collapse, police and administrative officials conducted a thorough inspection of the bridge located at Nanda Chowki. They confirmed that the main structure of the bridge remains intact; however, continuous heavy rain has washed away the soil beneath the access road, leading to its partial collapse.
Officials noted that traffic has been affected following the incident. They stated that technical staff from relevant agencies, along with police and administrative personnel, are present at the site, working swiftly to repair the damaged road. They assured that the road would be restored to meet safety standards and reopened for vehicular traffic soon.
Dehradun District Magistrate Dr. Ashish Chauhan personally inspected the site with a team of technical engineers amidst the rain and instructed officials to restore the road as quickly as possible. Following the natural disaster last September, an alternative temporary bridge was constructed to facilitate traffic after the original bridge was damaged. However, during the heavy rains on the 12th of this month, that temporary bridge also collapsed, prompting the administration to reopen the repaired old bridge for traffic on the same day.
The Congress party has criticized the state government regarding the quality of the repair work, alleging that corruption has undermined the state's foundations, as the bridge, repaired at a cost of 16 crore rupees, did not last even 16 days. After staging a protest against the government's poor performance, senior vice president of the state Congress, Surya Kant Dhasmana, condemned the government and administration, claiming they are trying to evade responsibility by only mentioning the collapse of the access road. He stated, 'The access road is part of the bridge, and you cannot absolve yourself of responsibility by merely stating that the access road has collapsed.'
Dhasmana has called for the dismissal of the state's Public Works Department minister and demanded legal action against the engineer responsible for overseeing the bridge repairs.