'Has turn of 118-119 degrees': Experts to HC on Bhopal's meme-famed ‘90-degree’

Jabalpur: A rail overbridge in Bhopal that has become a subject of memes and public outcry for its “90-degree” structure has a turn of 118-119 degrees, an expert has told the Madhya Pradesh High Court.

In view of the latest findings, the Madhya Pradesh government has sought time from the court to reconsider its decision against a firm it had blacklisted in connection with the controversial structure.

The expert, a professor from the Bhopal-based Maulana Azad National Institute of Technology, submitted a report before the division bench of Chief Justice Sanjeev Sachdev and Justice Vinay Saraf on Wednesday on the overpass.

M/s Puneet Chadha, which was involved in the construction of the flyover in the Aishbagh area of the MP capital, had moved the HC after the government blacklisted it amid a huge controversy over a “right-angle” turn on the bridge. The petition had prompted the court to seek an expert report.

After the submission of the report, which says the bridge has a turn of 118-119 degrees, the MP government sought time from the court to rethink the action against the company. The court accepted the request and scheduled the next hearing on September 17.

The court has also directed that copies of the report be provided to all parties.

According to the petitioner, it got the contract for the construction of a flyover in Aishbagh in 2021-22. The General Arrangement Drawing (GAD) of the bridge was issued by a government agency, and the work was to be completed in 18 months.

The GAD was amended between 2023 and 2024, and the bridge was constructed under the supervision of the government agency, said the petitioner.

However, the images of the bridge with a sharp turn went viral on social media, drawing ridicule and criticism as the structure raised the possibility of accidents. The government then formed a five-member committee to investigate the matter.

There was a lack of coordination between the state government and the railways in the matter, said the probe committee, noting that the rail track passes under the bend on the bridge. Besides, the pillars of the overpass have not been installed at the prescribed distance, it said.

The petitioner claimed that the government blacklisted it only on the basis of the report of the investigation committee, without giving it an opportunity for a hearing. “The bend of the bridge is not 90 degrees but between 118-119 degrees,” it told the court.

Earlier, while ordering the expert assessment, the court had said that the petitioner should provide Rs 1 lakh towards the fees, and the Municipal Corporation of Bhopal should provide the required resources.

If the petitioner’s claim is correct, they will have the right to recover the fee amount, and no strict action should be taken against them, the court had said.

Taking a serious note of the controversy, the state on June 28 had suspended seven PWD engineers and ordered a departmental probe against a retired superintendent engineer for the “faulty design” of the bridge with the unusual turn.

The construction agency and design consultant have been blacklisted, and a committee has been formed to make necessary improvements in the rail over-bridge (ROB), Chief Minister Mohan Yadav had said in a post on X that day.