The death toll in the Gambhira bridge collapse in Padra of Vadodara district rose to 18, even as the rescue operations continued on the second day on Thursday.
On Wednesday morning, the bridge on the river Mahisagar broke into two parts and several vehicles fell in the river. From Wednesday night to Thursday, five more bodies were taken out from the river. Few people are still missing.
Meanwhile, Gujarat chief minister Bhupendra Patel on Thursday suspended four officers based on the findings of a primary report. Soon after the incident, Patel had set up an inquiry.
Those suspended are: Executive engineer N. M. Nayakawala, deputy executive engineers U. C. Patel and R. T. Patel. Assistant engineer J. V. Shah has also been suspended.
The bridge, which is over 30-year-old, connects Central Gujarat and Saurashtra.
Vadodara Collector Anil Dhameliya told media persons that a high-level technical team is inspecting the bridge and figuring out the cause behind the collapse.
The state government had announced Rs 4 lakh for the kin of those killed and Rs 50,000 for the injured. This is in addition to Rs 2 lakh for the kin of those killed and Rs 50,000 announced by Prime Minister Narendra Modi from Prime Minister’s Relief Fund.
The callous attitude of the state government came in for sharp criticism from the opposition parties. Several leaders even termed the accident as a “man-made disaster”.
The Gujarat Government had given to the Gujarat High Court a report on the condition of the bridges in the state after the Morbi bridge collapse claimed over 135 lives in October 2022. However, there are several bridges like Gambhira bridge in the state that are in a dilapidated condition.
An expert team from the Gujarat Pollution Control Board also visited the accident site as a tanker that fell in the river was carrying chemicals.
