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50-year-old Majerhat bridge to be completely demolished, Mamata Banerjee govt to construct new one within a year

The West Bengal government on Friday announced that the Majerhat Bridge will be completely demolished. The decision comes ten days after the collapse that killed three people. Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee said that the new bridge will be constructed within a year. 

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The West Bengal government on Friday announced that the Majerhat Bridge will be completely demolished. The decision comes ten days after the collapse that killed three people. Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee said that the new bridge will be constructed within a year. 

The chief minister blamed the PMD department for the poor upkeep and said there was negligence on the part of PWD officials in the bridge collapse. "They cannot avoid responsibilities," Banerjee told reporters at the state secretariat.

A section of the over 50-year-old bridge on the arterial Diamond Harbour Road in south Kolkata collapsed on September 4 in which 3 persons lost their lives. 

After the collapse, Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee had ordered a probe headed by Chief Secretary Malay De. “Two of the labourers from ongoing Metro Rail work have been found. There is a possibility that 2-3 could have been killed. We will return tomorrow morning and go directly to the spot.  We are videographing everything. If need be, there will be a forensic test. A high-level investigation will be carried out and whoever is found negligent will be punished,” Banerjee had said at the time of the accident.

Immediately after the mishap, officials of the fire department, disaster management team and NDRF swung into action. Hydraulic cranes and JCBN machines were also pressed in. Immediate images on the social media showed several vehicles crushed and many two-wheelers parked under the bridge were buried under the debris.

State-run engineering and consultancy agency RiTES had in 2016 warned the West Bengal government on the precarious condition of several bridges in the city including the Majerhat structure but no action was taken.

An officel said that the West Bengal government was about to undertake repair work on the decrepit Majerhat bridge but it got delayed due to bureaucratic wrangles

"The tender (for Majerhat bridge) is already out for the repair work and the process in on. It has been decided that within a few days a monitoring committee would be formed to look into the condition of all the bridges in the city," the senior PWD official told PTI. After the collapse of the Vivekanada flyover in the city in March 2016, the state government had mandated Rail India Technical and Economic Service (RiTES) to survey the conditions of different bridges in Kolkata, he said.

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