Under-construction bridge collapses in West Bengal
KOLKATA: An under-construction bridge collapsed in Kakdwip area of South 24 Parganas district on Monday, a senior official said, adding however there has been no report of any casualty. This is the third incident of bridge collapse in the state in September. Majerhat Bridge in south Kolkata had collapsed on September 4, killing three persons and injuring 24.
On September 7, an old bridge had collapsed near Siliguri in north Bengal leaving a truck driver injured.
Locals had allegedly pointed out many faults in the under-construction Kakdwip bridge but the pleas fell on deaf ears.
Local said that there were fissures in the bridge which was coming up on Kalnagini river following which it collapsed.
The state government has ordered a probe to find out the cause of collapse -- whether it was the faulty design or poor quality of materials used.
Earlier on March 31, 2016, 28 people were killed when Vivekananda flyover had collapsed at Posta in Burrabazar area of Kolkata.
Last week the urban development minister Firhad Hakim spotted the design of Chingrighata flyover to be faulty following which plying of buses and heavy vehicles have been stopped on it. Even a crack was spotted in the Karunamoyee bridge in south Kolkata due to which traffic movement had been restricted on it too.
Movement of heavy vehicles is now restricted in Kolkata and even at the entry point to the city -- Santragachi bridge - which allows vehicles to reach Kolkata through NH2 and NH6 as the bridge is also in a bad shape for which the repair is likely to start within a fortnight.
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Vijay seeks future CBI inquiry on Karur stampede in TN
Chennai (PTI): TVK chief Vijay has appealed to the CBI to hold its future inquiry into the Karur stampede case in Chennai or elsewhere in Tamil Nadu, citing his Assembly election-related engagements.
Prior to appearing for the CBI's questioning on March 15, the Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam founder wrote to the investigating agency stating that he had already appeared for questioning in New Delhi on January 12 and 19 in compliance with the notices for his appearance before the CBI office in the national capital.
The letter dated March 14 was also marked to Justice Ajay Rastogi who has been appointed by the Supreme Court to oversee the investigation into the tragic Karur stampede that claimed 41 lives and left many injured.
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In the letter, Vijay pointed out that he had sought a minimum of 10-15 days' time for his appearance for the inquiry and also requested permission to appear either in Chennai or any other place in Tamil Nadu due to his "personal inconvenience and commitments and preoccupation with respect to the ensuring Assembly election work."
Inspite of the request, the investigating officer asked him to appear in New Delhi on March 15, he said.
On Sunday, the actor-politician was questioned for more than seven hours and left the CBI office at around 6.30 pm. During the third round of questioning, he was accompanied by his party leaders Aadhav Arjuna and C T R Nirmal Kumar.
According to TVK sources on Tuesday, Vijay was said to have stated in the letter that he appeared for inquiry as a "law abiding citizen." He and his party cadres were victims of the Karur tragedy and were in "unexplainable mental agony due to the loss of lives and injuries during the stampede (on September 27, 2025) despite genuine precautions."
The Tamil Nadu Assembly elections are scheduled on April 23.
