Bailey bridge near India-China border in U'khand collapses

Pithoragarh: A bailey bridge in this district of Uttarakhand, nearly 50 km from the Sino-India border, collapsed when a truck carrying a JCB machine was crossing it, an official said on Tuesday.

“The truck driver and the JCB machine operator were injured as the 40-feet-long bridge, built-in 2009, crashed on Monday, June 22 under the combined weight of the truck and the JCB machine,” SDM of Munsyari A K Shukla said.

“The weight-bearing capacity of the bridge was 18 tonne while the combined weight of the JCB machine and the truck was 26 tonnes,” he said.

The SDM said that the truck driver and the JCB machine operator have been admitted to a hospital in Munsyari.

“Around 15 border villages of Johar Valley have been cut off. Legal action will be taken against the truck driver,” the official said.

“Construction of another bridge will take at least 15 days,” the SDM said.