Another bridge collapses in Bihar, 10th such incident in over 15 days | Patna News

The small bridge over the Gandaki River was located in Baneyapur block and connected several villages in Saran with the neighbouring Siwan district.

“The small bridge was built 15 years ago. I am going to the spot. Several other district administration officials have already reached the spot. The exact cause of the bridge collapse is yet to be ascertained but desilting work was carried out recently,” the district magistrate told PTI.

On Wednesday, two small bridges collapsed in Saran district – one in Janta Bazar area and another in Lahladpur area.

“A high-level inquiry has been ordered to find out the cause behind the collapse of these small bridges in the district,” the DM said.

According to locals, the heavy rains in the area over the past few days may have contributed to the collapse of these small bridges.

A total of 10 bridges collapsed in the last 16 days in the districts of Siwan, Saran, Madhubani, Araria, East Champaran and Kishanganj.

The latest incident came a day after Chief Minister Nitish Kumar directed the road and agriculture departments to inspect all the old bridges in the state and identify those that need immediate repair.

The chief minister had chaired a meeting to review maintenance guidelines on Wednesday and said that the Highways Department had already prepared its guidelines on bridge maintenance and that the Rural Works Department should submit its plan as soon as possible.