Nitish embarrassed as another bridge washed away before inauguration

In a major embarrassment to the Bihar government, a portion of the approach road to the Bangra Ghat bridge in Gopalganj district was washed away just hours before the inauguration of the bridge by Chief Minister Nitish Kumar. The bridge was built at a cost of roughly Rs 509 crore and was scheduled to be inaugurated by Bihar CM Nitish Kumar over video conferencing. However, late on Tuesday night, the approach road caved in and washed away with the swelling waters of River Gandak in Gopalganj. Despite the situation, authorities worked overnight to create makeshift arrangements and establish the washed-away approach road just 30 minutes before the inauguration.

The issue caught the attention of Leader of Opposition Tejashwi Yadav almost immediately. He targeted the government on Twitter and put up videos of the destroyed approach road on social media. Yadav blamed the government for rampant corruption. He also said that the chief minister of the state was in a hurry as elections are around the corner and that bridges and roads are being inaugurated without safety norms and quality control. Tejashwi also attacked the state government by recalling other similar instances like the washing away of the approach road to the Sattarghat bridge within 29 days of being inaugurated by the CM. Yadav also drew attention to the incident of Kahalaon where a dam was washed away in similar way.

The JD-U tried to deflect the issue and blamed Tejashwi for failing to understand the situation. JD-U minister Neeraj Kumar criticised the RJD leader and said that it was not the bridge but only the approach road which had washed away due to excessive rain. He further directed a question at the opposition, asking how many bridges and roads had been made in the tenure of the RJD in Bihar.