A Facebook post claims that cracks have been found on the bridge over Siang River at Pasighat in Arunachal Pradesh. Giving details of the crack, which could be seen in a picture posted by Tony Pertin on Facebook, the post said that the bridge may collapse anytime if it is not repaired immediately.
“This bridge is the lifeline of eastern Arunachal. The bridge may collapse anytime unless corrective measures are taken,” said the Facebook post by Tony Pertin. The post further requested anyone in the know-how of any concerned authorities to apprise them of the situation.
Pasighat is the headquarters of East Siang district of Arunachal Pradesh. Situated at 155 meters above sea level, Pasighat is regarded as Arunachal’s oldest town. The town was selected as one of the hundred Indian cities to be developed as a smart city under PM Narendra Modi’s flagship Smart Cities Mission.
The foundation stone for the 763.5m-bridge on the Siang River at Ranaghat was laid by former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi in 1988 and the project was supposed to be over by September, 1991. But it took almost two decades for completion due to various reasons ranging from technical to wrong selection of site besides faulty geological and hydrological surveys.
The bridge, which was open for public use in 2009, was built by Mumbai-based Gammon India Limited. Initially, the estimated cost of the bridge was fixed at Rs 11.34 crore but it shot up to Rs 25 crore due to price escalation.
