Pune horror: Villagers say no barricades installed to stop people from using unsafe bridge

Time of India

7 hours ago

PUNE: Four people, including a five-year-old boy, died, one person was missing and eight others were critically injured after an iron and concrete footbridge, also used by two-wheeler riders collapsed in the Indrayani River near Kund Mala, a popular tourist destination about 40km from Pune, at 3.30pm on Sunday.
The narrow bridge connects Shelarwadi, near Bhegdewadi close to the old Pune-Mumbai highway, with Indori. It was declared dangerous and closed for use.
Minister for water resources and disaster management Girish Mahajan told reporters at the spot, "A crowd of (100+) people on the bridge at the time of the incident was beyond its carrying capacity, following which it collapsed as a large number of tourists had come here to enjoy their holiday.
A signboard telling people not to enter this structure was also installed, but they still went there."
Pimpri Chinchwad's deputy commissioner of police Vishal Gaikwad told TOI, "Three of the deceased have been identified as Chandrakant Sathle, Rohit Mane and Vihan Mane (5). The identity of the fourth victim has not yet been established." At least 51 people were injured in the accident.
Barring the critically injured, the condition of the remaining 42 victims was reported to be out of danger as they were being treated in various hospitals.
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Eight of them were discharged after treatment, the authorities said.
An elaborate rescue operation, led by National Disaster Response Force (NDRF), police, fire brigade and other rescue agencies along with heavy duty cranes to lift the collapsed iron guard rail continued till late Sunday evening.
Three of the victims were trapped under these collapsed structures. The rescuers managed to pull out the bodies of two victims but a third person was reported missing.
Pimpri Chinchwad's police commissioner Vinoy Kumar Choubey said search operations will resume on Monday morning under the collapsed bridge and downstream sections of the river.
Senior public works department officials told TOI that they constructed the footbridge over three decades ago and handed it over to Pune zilla parishad for maintenance and its upkeep was the ZP's responsibility. A new parallel bridge has been sanctioned and work will begin after the rains.
Local MLA Sunil Shelke told TOI, "The administration sanctioned Rs 8 crore and the tendering process is over. " Local authorities, including Indori village's sarpanch, had flagged the old bridge as unsafe.
"Despite a warning sign put up by the sarpanch, people continued to use it," the PWD official said. District administration officials said there were over a 100 people on the bridge when it collapsed. They said the bridge was closed for public movement after it was termed 'dangerous' for use.
However, local residents said that it was still being used, and there were no barricades or restrictions by the police or the local administration. The bridge was also being used by two-wheeler riders from two villages as a shortcut to reach the main road. Several bikes were also swept away in the accident, an official said.
"There was no space. It was crowded, and there were some bikes on it. The situation worsened quickly," Umakant Dalvi, a survivor, told TOI.
He said many ran towards the main road after it collapsed. Deputy commandant of NDRF Deepak Tiwari said the iron structure had to be cut and then removed by cranes. Two bodies were recovered from under the mangled frames.
Barely a week ago, Pune district collector Jitendra Dudi had passed an order listing several restrictions for people visiting rivers, lakes, waterfalls and other popular weekend spots during the monsoon in Lonavla and other places in the district.
The affected area was also covered under the prohibitory orders. Officials said that although warning boards were in place and police personnel were stationed in the area, it was overcrowded.
Dudi told TOI, "A five-member committee will be constituted to investigate the accident. The committee will have two primary mandates: first, to examine whether there was any administrative lapse, and second, to recommend changes to the existing standard operating procedures.
It will be headed by an additional collector ranked officer and the panel will submit its report within a fortnight."
Dudi said, " People must strictly follow the prohibitory orders issued for all tourist locations in the district, especially areas with waterfalls or other water bodies." Mahajan said it was also the responsibility of tourists to follow prohibitory orders. "I will request the CM, who holds the home ministry, to act against police personnel if found guilty.
The bridge was not guarded despite orders to keep it closed," he said. The state govt has announced a compensation of Rs 5 lakh each for the next of kin and treatment of the injured will be fully covered by the district administration, the collector said