After a bridge over the Ganga came crashing down in Bihar within three weeks, bringing the state government under fire, a portion of another bridge being built over the Mechi river in Kishanganj district caved.
The collapsed bridge, being constructed by the National Highway Authority of India (NHAI), was part of a 49-km four-lane road, linking Kishanganj and Katihar districts, under the central government’s Bharat Mala project. The construction of the bridge had started last year and it was supposed to be inaugurated next year.
Deputy CM Tejashwi Yadav said, “The bridge was being constructed by the NHAI. It had nothing to do with the state government. It is the NHAI which is empowered to reward or punish officials or agencies concerned.” The Sultanganj-Aguani Ghat bridge on the Ganga had collapsed on June 4, triggering a war of words between BJP and Grand Alliance constituents.