New Delhi: As Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated the Kosi rail mega bridge in Bihar on Friday, claiming it to be a “watershed moment” in the state’s history, another newly constructed bridge in Goabari village of Bihar’s Kishanganj collapsed.The construction of the Kishanganj bridge was recently completed and its inauguration was awaited. However, due to a sudden rise in the water level of the Kanakai river, it got washed away. Nearly Rs 1.42 crore was spent on its construction.According to news reports, locals have demanded a probe into those involved in the building of the bridge, some even alleging that substandard material was used in the construction.The 1.9-kilometre-long Kosi mega bridge project, connecting Bihar and adjoining regions to the North East, was sanctioned by the then ruling government in 2003-04, and has been built at a cost of Rs 516 crore.Also read: Bihar: Kosi Project’s Promise of Flood-Free Prosperity Remains a Distant Dream“The inauguration of Kosi rail mega bridge will fulfil the 86-year-old dream. This bridge is of strategic importance along the India-Nepal border. The project was completed during the COVID-19 pandemic where the migrant labour also participated in its completion,” the prime minister’s office (PMO) said in a statement.Development projects being inaugurated that will benefit the people of Bihar. #BiharKaPragatiPath https://t.co/EASdYznLKK— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) September 18, 2020This region had a meter gauge link between Nirmali and Bhaptiahi that was built in 1887, but it collapsed during the floods and Indo-Nepal earthquake in 1934. After that, rail connectivity could not be restored.There are several other projects in line to be inaugurated by Modi, including a new railway bridge on the Kiul river, two new railway lines, five electrification projects, one electric locomotive shed at Barauni, a third line project between Barh and Bakhtiyarpur, and Saharsa-Asanpur Kupha train from the Supaul station.Modi has also laid foundation stones for numerous development projects, with an estimated total cost of Rs 16,000 crore, in poll-bound Bihar.
