Alternative bridge opened for traffic near Sino-India border in Uttarakhand: BRO official

The BRO on Saturday opened an alternative bridge for traffic, days after a bailey bridge collapsed nearly 50 km from the Sino-India border in Uttarakhand's Pithoragarh district.

The alternative bridge, which is very important for high altitude villages of the district, was built in five days, a BRO official said.

"The construction of the bridge has reconnected 15 high altitude villages with the sub-divisional headquarters at Munsyari and made it convenient for the security personnel who commute through the route," BRO official PK Rai said.

The bailey bridge in Senargar on Munsiyari-Milam road had crashed on Monday when a truck carrying a JCB machine was crossing it, an official said.

The truck driver and the JCB machine operator were injured as the 40-ft-long bridge, built in 2009, crashed under the combined weight of the truck and the JCB machine, Munsyari SDM AK Shukla had said.