Pune Indrayani river bridge collapse: Two dead, 18 injured; NDRF leads efforts to rescue three
Pune, Jun 15 (PTI): Two persons died and 18 were seriously injured after an old iron bridge on Indrayani river collapsed on Sunday afternoon in Pune's Maval tehsil, officials said.
At least three people, including a child, are still stuck under the collapsed portion of the structure and efforts are underway to rescue them, district officials said late in the evening.
The incident took place at 3:30pm in Kundamala area, which has been seeing heavy rains over the past few days, giving the river a steady flow, an official from Talegaon Dabhade police station said. It was not raining when the bridge collapsed in the presence of at least 100 picnickers, he added.
"In the mishap, so far 38 people have been rescued of which 18 sustained serious injuries and they are currently under treatment in three different hospitals. During treatment, two people succumbed to injuries while three people are still trapped under the portion of a collapsed bridge," a statement from the district administration informed.
Teams of the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF), a specialised unit to tackle such emergencies, as well as personnel from the fire brigade, police and local rescue organizations are involved in rescue and relief efforts, it added.
Maharashtra Minister of Disaster Management Girish Mahajan, who was at the site monitoring rescue efforts, said the bridge collapsed under the weight of a large number of tourists.
"The bridge was meant only for pedestrians and there was a warning board there stating that it cannot be used by two-wheelers. It seems people on the bridge did not pay heed to these instructions, which caused the incident," Mahajan told reporters.
He said the state government has announced compensation of Rs 5 lakh each to the kin of the deceased.
Queried about the lack of police presence at the spot despite it attracting crowds amid rains, the minister said this would be probed.
"'It has been observed that despite giving constant warnings about dangerous spots during the monsoon, people go and risk their lives. We appeal to the tourists not to risk their lives by visiting such places," he added.
Speaking about rescue and relief efforts, Mahajan said cranes have been deployed to remove the collapsed portion of the bridge, while full scale efforts are on to rescue some people stuck under this collapsed part.
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Supreme Court takes suo motu notice of news over dog bite leading to rabies
New Delhi(PTI): The Supreme Court on Monday took suo motu cognisance of a media report of dog bite incident leading to rabies, saying it contained some "alarming and disturbing figures".
A bench of Justices J B Pardiwala and R Mahadevan termed the news item published today in Delhi edition of English daily Times of India as "very disturbing and alarming".
The news report was about the death of a six-year-old girl, who was attacked by a rabid stray dog, in the national capital.
Taking cognisance of the news report, the bench said, "The news item contains some alarming and disturbing figures and facts."
It said every day, hundreds of dog bites were being reported in the city and on its outskirts, leading to rabies and ultimately, children and aged were falling prey to the dreadful disease.
"We take suo motu cognisance of this news item," the bench ordered.
It asked the apex court registry to register it as a suo motu petition in public interest.
"Let this order be placed along with the news report before the Chief Justice of India for appropriate orders," the bench said.
On July 15, while hearing a separate plea alleging harassment over feeding of community dogs in Noida, the apex court had asked the petitioner, "Why don't you feed them in your own house?"
The top court told the petitioner's counsel, "We should leave every lane, every road open for these large hearted people? There is all space for these animals, no space for humans. Why don't you feed them in your own house? Nobody is stopping you."
The observations came in a plea arising out of a March 2025 order of the Allahabad High Court.
The petitioner claimed harassment and said she was unable to feed community dogs in line with the Animal Birth Control Rules.
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