Bihar’s road construction department (RCD) minister Dilip Kumar Jaiswal on Saturday declared the Vikramshila Setu over the Ganga in Bhagalpur ‘absolutely safe’ for traffic, even as videos of crumbling protection walls around its piers triggered fresh panic on social media...READ FULL; ORIGINAL POST; FROM SOURCE.
The minister’s assurance came after a team of engineers from the RCD, IIT-Patna and Bihar Rajya Pul Nirman Nigam Limited (BRPNNL) inspected three affected piers following the viral clips. Jaiswal told Hindustan Times that the damage was limited to the “false steining,” or protective walls built around the piers during construction in 2001. These walls were meant to keep river water out while the concrete set and were supposed to be dismantled later. “They are not part of the main structure,” he stressed. “In three or four piers, they were simply not removed after work finished.”
He added that the experts gave a verbal all-clear on the spot but he has asked for a detailed written report by next week.…READ FULL; FROM THE SOURCE.