Under-Construction Bridge Pillar Crumbles In Odisha’s Balasore; Locals Allege Poor Work

Balasore: A pillar of an under-construction bridge of a canal project collapsed in Nilagiri area of Odisha’s Balasore district, raising questions over the quality of engineering work.

As per preliminary information, a total of six pillars were constructed for the bridge being built for a canal near Astia village under Nilagiri block of the district. The 6th pillar collapsed on Saturday night all of a sudden barely 24 hours after it was erected, apparently due to substandard work.

Local residents and sarpanch of the area claimed that construction work is being undertaken during night without the presence of engineers. The collapse of the pillar showed that the quality of construction work is poor, they said.

Stating that the bridge is being constructed for the Salandi canal project near Astia village, they said the construction work is not undertaken as per the estimate and requirement. The work is not carried out in the daytime and neither the engineer nor any technician remains present to supervise the work, they claimed.

The locals demanded a thorough probe into the whole matter and concrete steps to ensure proper construction work for the project.