Replace old, weak vintage bridges

The death of over 25 people after two buses and some private vehicles fell into the swollen Savitri river from a collapsed bridge near Mahad on the Mumbai-Goa national highway has exposed the unsafe condition of many road bridges in the country. The bridge was built by the British over 100 years ago and was still a vital link connecting two states. The mishap occurred when the vehicles rushed on the bridge in the dark without noticing that it had collapsed. There have been reports of at least six other bridge collapses in the last few weeks. The latest is the collapse of a 44-year-old bridge in Himachal Pradesh which, fortunately, did not cause any loss of life. There are many rail bridges also which were built during the British times but are still being used. There are entire rail lines which were built in the 19th century and survive to this day.

It is estimated that there are about 100 British-built bridges which are in active use now. There are serious questions about their safety. Many of the accidents occur during the rainy season or when natural calamities strike the structures. Enquiries which are conducted after the mishaps usually attribute them to the impact of such events. But the weakness of the bridges caused by the passage of time is mostly the reason for their collapse. Usually, the building quality of the bridges, the quality of materials used to construct them and the engineering skill that went into their making are admired and cited in contrast to the shoddy standards that are seen these days. But old bridges, especially those built a century or decades ago, suffer wear and tear and become weak over time, however well they were originally built. None of these bridges are built to bear the traffic load that they take these days. That makes them more vulnerable.

All such bridges of British vintage need to be replaced urgently in the interest of the safety of people and vehicles. Several committees have recommended measures for the maintenance and upkeep of such bridges but they are hardly implemented. The Mahad bridge had been certified as safe only in May. The National Highway Authority of India has ordered an inspection of old bridges after the mishap, but has also stated that the Mahad bridge was not within its jurisdiction. Multiple jurisdictions lead to evasion of responsibility in many cases. Some of these bridges may be preserved for their historical value and sentimental appeal. But their continued use would endanger lives because our maintenance systems are mostly unreliable.