Mizoram Tragedy: Ministry Of Railways Appoints Four-Member Committee To Probe Cause Of Railway Bridge Collapse In Aizawl

A committee has been formed by the Ministry of Railways to investigate the cause of the collapse of an under-construction railway bridge in Mizoram's capital Aizawl.

The collapse resulted in the tragic death of 22 workers. According to the order issued by the Railways Ministry, the committee is expected to submit its report within one month from the date of formation.

The committee consists of four members, namely B P Awasthi from RDSO, Dr Dipti Ranjan Sahoo from IIT Delhi, Sharad Kumar Agarwal from IRICEN, and Sandeep Sharma, Chief Bridge Engineer of NF Railway, as stated in the order.

The Works-I branch of the Railway Board has been assigned as the nodal branch responsible for the functioning of the committee.

This branch will also handle the submission of the committee's report for consideration by the Railway Board, implementation of the committee's recommendations, and all related issues, according to the order.

Tragedy struck when an under-construction railway bridge in the Bairabi-Sairang new line project near Aizawl collapsed, resulting in the death of 22 worker. Three others were injured.

On Thursday (24 August), the bodies of four missing workers were discovered, while one worker remains missing. Search operations are currently underway to locate the missing worker.

At the time of the incident, there were a total of 26 workers present.

The railways have determined that the accident, which occurred on Wednesday, was caused by the collapse of a gantry.

The bridge is part of the 51.38-kilometre-long Bairabi Sairang Railway Line that will put Aizawl on the rail map of India. The Rs 5,021.45 crore project involved the construction of 23 tunnels and 130 bridges and is slated to be ready by this year-end. 

Chief Public Relations Officer of Northeast Frontier Railway Sabyasachi De said: “The bridge that collapsed was part of an Indian Railways project to connect all state capitals in the northeast region. It has been under construction for some years now”. 

In response to the tragedy, Prime Minister Narendra Modi has announced an ex gratia of Rs 2 lakh for each next of kin of the deceased and Rs 50,000 for those who were injured.

The bridge is being constructed over the Kurung river and is located between the Bairabi and Sairang railway stations. The height of the pier of the bridge is 104 metres. Sairang Railway Station is set to be the last railhead before reaching Mizoram’s capital. 

Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw has declared that the relatives of the workers will receive a compensation of Rs 10 lakh. Additionally, those who sustained minor injuries will be granted an ex gratia compensation of Rs 50,000.