PATNA: Two labourers were killed and five others were injured when an iron pillar of an under-construction railway over bridge collapsed in Bihar’s southern Rohtas district on Saturday.
The incident, which occurred near Sasaram railway station, disrupted the movement of trains on the Grand Chord line of Gaya-Mughalsarai rail section for several hours.
Trains scheduled to take the route were diverted to other lines. Railway traffic resumed after the debris was moved off the rail tracks, officials said.
About 30 labourers were engaged in the construction of the overbridge at Gorakshani. Although the exact reason for the accident is yet to be ascertained, railway sources said frequent rains over the past two days weakened the base of the pillar.
The two dead labourers were identified as Faidul and Nathan. Their bodies were recovered from beneath the collapsed iron pillar.
Sasaram Station Manager Umesh Kumar confirmed the deaths and said one of the two killed died on the spot.
Except for one injured labourer, who hailed from Amritsar in Punjab, the rest were from Khadunbari village in Assam’s Barpeta district, he added.
The injured labourers were taken to a nearby private hospital and then to the district hospital at Sasaram.
Rakibul, who sustained severe injuries, was later shifted to Patna Medical College and Hospital, said Kumar.
Hundreds of local residents protested the incident, saying that it was a result of the adoption of poor construction standards. They blocked the Ara-Sasaram main road for about two hours, following the accident.
Sources said the railway has recommended a probe to ascertain the cause of the accident.
In a similar incident in Muzaffarpur district in November 2013, fourteen people were injured when a road over bridge (ROB) collapsed and fell on a goods train passing under it.