Bihar bridge collapses: Officers suspended, then brought back, observes Supreme Court

New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Wednesday pulled up the Bihar government observing its officials were suspended after incidents of bridge collapse but brought back after the furore died down.

A bench comprising Chief Justice Sanjiv Khanna and Justice Sanjay Kumar made the observation and transferred to the Patna High Court a PIL raising concerns about the safety and longevity of bridges in Bihar while claiming the collapse of several such structures in the recent months.

“Certain officers were duly suspended after the bridge collapse incident only to be brought back after the furore over the incident died down,” the bench observed.

The top court was also critical of the voluminous reply filed by the state government and its authorities to the PIL filed by lawyer petitioner Brajesh Singh.

The counter affidavit of the state government contains a long list of schemes, policies and does not provide any reason for the incidents, the bench said.

Transferring the PIL, the bench said the Patna High Court could monitor, preferably on a monthly basis, the steps taken to ensure structural and safety audits of bridges in Bihar.

The bench asked the petitioner, state authorities and the National Highway Authority of India (NHAI) to appear before the high court on May 14 when a future hearing date would be fixed there.

In a brief hearing, the state government said it had inspected around 10,000 bridges in the state.

“We have gone through the counter (affidavit). We are transferring the case to Patna (High Court). In the counter affidavit, they (state authorities) have given details of what they are doing…,” the bench said.

On November 18 last year, the top court granted a last opportunity to the Bihar government and others to file its response to the PIL on the issue.

Earlier, the petitioner had moved the court seeking its nod to bring on record various news reports and additional documents to highlight the dilapidated condition of bridges in the state.

On July 29, 2024 the court sought responses from the Bihar government and others, including the NHAI on the plea.

The PIL sought directions for a structural audit and setting up of an expert panel to identify bridges that could either be strengthened or demolished based on its findings.

Aside from the state and the NHAI, the top court in July last year also issued notices to the road construction department's additional chief secretary, Bihar Rajya Pul Nirman Nigam Limited chairperson and rural works department's additional chief secretary.

Ten incidents of bridge collapse were reported in Bihar's Siwan, Saran, Madhubani, Araria, East Champaran and Kishanganj districts from May to July last year.

Many claimed heavy rainfall to the probable cause behind these incidents.

The PIL raised concerns about the safety and longevity of the bridges in the state that usually witnesses heavy rains and floods during the monsoon.

Apart from setting up a high-level expert panel, the plea sought real-time monitoring of the bridges as per the parameters laid by the Union Ministry of Road Transport and Highways.

The petitioner said Bihar was the most flood-prone state in the country with a total flood-affected area of 68,800 square kilometer, comprising 73.06 per cent of its total geographical area.

"Hence, such routine accrual of the incident of falling bridges in Bihar is more disastrous as the lives of people at large is at stake. Therefore, the urgent intervention of this court is required to save the lives of people, as the under-construction bridges before its (their) accomplishment collapsed routinely," the plea said.

In view of the incidents, Chief Minister Nitish Kumar had directed the road construction and rural works departments to conduct a survey of all old bridges in the state and identify those in need of immediate repair.