At least 17 employees were murdered, and several others are believed to be trapped, after an under-construction railway bridge fell near Sairang, Mizoram, about 11 a.m. on Wednesday, around 21 kilometres from the state capital Aizawl.
At the time of the tragedy, there were 40 construction workers on the bridge.
“Seventeen bodies have been recovered from the debris so far…many others are still missing,” a police officer told PTI.
Young Mizo Association’s Sairang branch is now conducting rescue operations.
“The collapsed bridge was part of an Indian Railways project to link all state capitals in the northeast region.” It has been in construction for a number of years. The incident occurred at 11 a.m. “We are still investigating the cause of the accident and how many people were on board when it happened,” Sabyasachi De, chief public relations officer of Northeast Frontier Railway (NFR), said.
The bridge was built over the Kurung River, between the Bairabi and Sairang railway stations. The height of the bridge’s pier is 104 metres. The Sairang railway station will be the final railhead before reaching Mizoram’s capital. When finished, the project will link Aizawl to the national railway network.
On social media platform X (previously Twitter), Mizoram chief minister Zoramthanga expressed his sorrow over the disaster, writing, “Under construction railway over bridge at Sairang, near Aizawl fell today; at least 15 employees died: The rescue is currently underway. This event has deeply saddened and touched me. I express my heartfelt condolences to all the lost families and wish the injured a fast recovery. Thank you to everyone who has come out in great numbers to assist with rescue operations.”
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Source: HT
