Srikakulam, May 03: On Wednesday morning, a bridge over Bahuda river collapsed in Ichha puram, Srikakulam district. The collapse occurred while a lorry was carrying a load of 70 tons of granite stones from Aska in Odisha to Ongole. Heavy vehicles usually take the adjacent national highway, but this lorry carrying a load of granite came through Ichha puram town. The bridge collapsed when it reached the river Bahuda, causing the lorry to slide down into the river. Fortunately, there was no loss of life as there was no traffic on the bridge at the time of the accident, and the driver and cleaner in the lorry survived with minor injuries.
The collapse of the bridge has caused the vehicular traffic going directly into Ichchapuram town to come to a standstill. As an alternative, the police are diverting buses and other vehicles from the side of the national highway. The bridge over Bahuda river was built in 1929 during the then British rule, and even though the bridge was becoming weak since time immemorial, the rulers did not pay attention to it. This has led to criticism that it collapsed today.
