By Prakash Chandra Bhattarai
Devghat, Apr. 26: A portion of a bridge under construction over the Trishuli River collapsed for the second time on Sunday, killing one person and leaving eight workers injured. s
The deceased has been identified as 43-year-old Indian national Vijay Yadav. He breathed his last while undergoing treatment at Chitwan Medical College. The eight injured workers are also receiving medical treatment at the same hospital.
Whereabouts of two other individuals who were caught in the accident are currently unknown. Eyewitness accounts confirm that the two missing labourers fell into the river, but the police have not been able to retrieve their bodies.
Nepal Army, Nepal Police, and the Armed Police Force are now combing the area around the Trishuli and have also been navigating the river to retrieve the bodies of the missing individuals, according to Chitwan Police Chief Om Prasad Adhikari.
The bridge has been designed to connect Thimura of Bharatpur Municipality-1, Chitwan to Devghat Rural Municipality’s Ghinatar Ward No. 5 of Tanahun.
Earlier, the bridge broke down in the morning of April 6, destroying the steel struts that held the bridge together. The labourers were working to mend the steel structures when the bridge collapsed for the second time. All the 14 individuals working in the site were plunged into the river as the bridge came tumbling down.
The construction project has stalled for a long time since it was first envisioned in November of 2014.
A contract agreement was signed to assign the responsibility of the construction to Elite Adventures and Indreni Joint Ventures to complete the task by November of 2017.
Initially, Rs. 160 million was allocated for the bridge constrcution, which was later increased to Rs. 216.8 million. The completion deadline of the project has been extended three times over the years.
Earlier, construction work got suspended for 18 months citing design amendment issues. Then the project came to a standstill after the devastating 2015 Earthquake and the subsequent trade blockade. And since last year, COVID-19 restrictions have disrupted its construction.