The bridge, which spanned a canal and connected villages in Daraunda and Maharajganj blocks, caved in around 5 am, according to district magistrate Mukul Kumar Gupta.
“Nobody was injured in the incident.It was a very old structure and apparently, pillars caved in when water was released through the canal. We are trying to ensure that until it is restored, residents of affected villages face as little inconvenience as possible,” said DM.
Surya Pratap Singh, the Block Development Officer of Daraunda, stated that locals claim the bridge was constructed in 1991 with contributions from Uma Shankar Singh, who was the Maharajganj MLA at the time.
The sub divisional magistrate of Maharajganj, Anil Kumar, confirmed that the 20-foot-long brick structure had been built using the MLA’s local area development fund. He added that further action would be taken based on the investigation report.
This incident follows the collapse of a newly constructed bridge, approximately 180 meters long, in the Araria district on Tuesday. The Rural Works Department has initiated departmental action against the officials responsible for the Araria bridge collapse.
Bihar has witnessed several mishaps involving bridges of various sizes constructed over rivers and other water bodies. Although these incidents have not resulted in casualties, they have raised concerns about the quality of public works in the state.