An SIT probe in the collapse of the Morbi suspension bridge in Gujarat which claimed the lives of 135 people last year revealed the real reason behind the mishap.
Months after the tragic and chilling collapse of the Morbi suspension bridge in Gujarat which claimed 135 lives, a government-appointed Special Investigation Team (SIT) has found in its preliminary probe the real reason why the mishap took place.
While many were raising fingers at the BJP-led Gujarat government and the company which was in charge of the construction of the bridge, the SIT probe has revealed that a lapse in repair and maintenance of the bridge led to the collapse in Morbi.
The Gujarat SIT team, while revealing the reason, said that the corrosion on nearly half of the wires on a cable and the welding of old suspenders with new ones were some of the major faults that led to the collapse of the suspension bridge in Morbi last year in which 135 people were killed.
Ajanta Manufacturing Limited (Oreva Group) was responsible for the operation and maintenance of the British-era suspension bridge on the Machchu river that collapsed on October 30 last year. Lapses in repairs and maintenance of the bridge were detected by the SIT team, pointing a finger at the company.
The SIT team noticed during the probe that the Morbi bridge collapse most likely took place due to one of the two main cables of the bridge, built by the erstwhile rulers in 1887 over river Machchhu, already being rusted. The team said that the wire might be broken even before the collapse of the bridge on October 30.
"It was observed that out of the 49 wires (of that cable), 22 were corroded, which indicates that those wires may have already broken before the incident. The remaining 27 wires recently broke," the SIT said in its report.
The SIT also found that during the renovation work, "old suspenders (steel rods which connect the cable with the platform deck) were welded with the new suspenders. Hence the behaviour of suspenders changed. In these types of bridges, single rod suspenders should be used to bear the load".
(With PTI inputs)
READ | Gujarat bridge collapse: What led to the mishap in Morbi? All you need to know about the iconic 143-year-old bridge
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