9 arrested in Gujarat’s Morbi bridge collapse case

Nine people have been arrested in connection with Gujarat’s Morbi bridge collapse in which over 140 people were killed.  Among them are managers of Oreva, the company that repaired the bridge, ticket collectors, bridge repair contractors and three security guards entrusted with controlling the crowds.

Oreva has been accused of violating multiple safety rules, leading to the huge tragedy just four days after the bridge reopened to the public.

After signing a 15-year deal with the Morbi municipal authority, Oreva, a company that makes watches, allegedly outsourced the “technical aspect of the bridge renovation” to a smaller company with Devprakash Solutions.

The company was bound by its contract to keep the bridge shut for at least eight to 12 months for maintenance and repairs. “It was a seriously irresponsible and careless gesture to open the bridge last week,” the police said in the FIR.

Those assigned the repair, maintenance and management of the bridge did not do the repair/maintenance work appropriately. They did not conduct a proper quality check but were aware of the possibly fatal dangers, it added.

Tickets were sold for Rs 12 to Rs 17 to nearly 500 people which resulted in overcrowding on the hanging bridge, causing the old metal cables to give way. The old bridge could take the weight of only about 125 people.