GUWAHATI: An under-construction railway bridge over the Kurung river in Mizoram collapsed on Wednesday around 9:30 am, killing at least 18 workers, some of them from West Bengal.
The incident occurred at Sairang, 21 km from state capital Aizawl. The Bairabi-Sairang railhead is part of the capital connectivity project.
"A railway bridge (bridge no. 196 near Sairang zero point) which was under construction collapsed near Sairang village…The bodies of 18 persons were recovered while three injured were rescued," the Mizoram government said in a statement.
Altogether 28 workers were believed to be at the site when the mishap occurred.
Sources from the Railways said a girder (a steel structure on which track is laid) collapsed while it was being installed. The girder was designed by STUP Consultants and proof-checked by the Indian Institute of Technology, Guwahati.
The bridge did not suffer any damage and the pillars – the tallest being 95 metres – are intact, the sources said.
The railways constituted a high-level committee to probe the incident and announced ex-gratia of Rs 10 lakh for those killed, Rs 2 lakh for those who sustained grievous injuries and Rs 50,000 for those who sustained minor injuries.
"Grieved by the unfortunate incident in Mizoram. NDRF, state administration and railway officials are at the site. Rescue operation on war footing," Railways Minister Ashwini Vaishnav wrote on X, previously Twitter.
The Mizoram government said the bodies would be embalmed and handed over to the Railways for transportation to respective villages following the conduct of post-mortem.
Search and rescue operations are underway in coordination with Border Security Force, National Disaster Response Force and police. All possible assistance is being provided at the site, the Mizoram government said.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi expressed grief over the loss of lives and announced ex-gratia of Rs 2 lakh for the next of kin of each deceased and Rs 50,000 for the injured from the Prime Minister’s National Relief Fund.
Union home minister Amit Shah spoke to Mizoram Governor Hari Babu Kambhampati and Chief Minister Zoramthanga and assured all possible assistance.
West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee and Zoramthanga also expressed grief.
"Shocked to learn about the tragic collapse today of an under-construction railway bridge in Mizoram, leading to loss of lives of several site workers, including some belonging to our Malda district," Banerjee wrote on X.
She said she instructed the chief secretary to coordinate with Mizoram administration and assured due compensation to the next of kin of all affected families.