An under-construction bridge on the four-lane highway being built across Hathali Khud collapsed near here today, leaving three persons injured, one of them seriously.
The bridge is part of the 17-km stretch between Kohali and Cheel Bahal on the Shimla-Matour four-lane highway, being constructed by the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI).
The estimated cost of the entire highway project is nearly Rs 10,000 crore, including compensation for land acquired for its construction.
A major portion of the bridge, made of steel, reportedly slipped from the pier and fell into the stream, which is around 150 feet deep.
Rakesh Yadav, Project Director, NHAI, said the incident occurred while a 90-metre-long truss bridge was being launched using the pushing method.
During the operation, the launching nose was positioned over the pier cap when it suddenly collapsed due to a mechanical failure, resulting in the truss structure falling into the stream.
He said there was no damage to the bridge piers.
Yadav said the three injured persons were shifted to the Medical College and Hospital in Hamirpur for treatment. Rescue and relief operations were underway at the site, he added.
A team of experts has also been called from Delhi to investigate the cause of the collapse, Yadav said.
