Illegal mining turns Ropar bridge wobbly, may collapse

Tribune News Service

Arun Sharma

Ropar, December 20

A bridge connecting Nangal with Garhshankar and hundreds of villages in the Nurpur Bedi area is on the verge of collapse due to illegal mining in Ropar district.

Though a majority of 13 piers of the 30-year-old bridge have been affected due to illegal mining in the Swan river, the pier number 7 has been dislocated. This has resulted in increase in the gap between the slabs.

A private agency hired by the Public Works Department (PWD) to conduct the safety audit of the bridge has advised its immediate closure to avoid any untoward incident.

Earlier, 14 piers of the Agampur bridge on the Sutlej, connecting Anandpur Sahib with Doaba, had been found exposed due to illegal mining. PWD officials have sought over Rs 44 crore for repair of the Agampur bridge.

Thousands of commuters from Nangal and Nurpur Bedi area will face hardship if the bridge is closed. Commuters from Nangal will have to cover an extra 30 km besides paying the entry fee at Himachal border to travel to Garhshankar as the alternative route passes through the neighbouring state. Similarly, residents of Nurpur Bedi will have to cover extra nine kilometres to reach Nangal.

Ironically, district PWD officials have repeatedly written to senior authorities since 2015 to stop illegal mining in the area to protect the bridge.

On July 5, 2016, the Ropar Deputy Commissioner was informed that due to illegal mining, the riverbed level had gone down from 310.5 m to 306.307 m. It was also pointed out that of the 13 piers, two — P5 and P7 — were the worst affected.

Experts say the foundation of the bridge is exposed due to illegal mining in the river. One of the pillars was dislocated due to strong water flow in monsoon. This has led to increase in the gap between two slabs of the bridge.

Alarmed over the development, PWD officials hired a Mohali-based private agency to conduct safety audit. The consultant has advised immediate repair of the bridge after closing it completely for vehicular traffic.

PWD Chief Engineer Anil Kumar Gupta visited the site today. Gupta said the foundation of the bridge was exposed because the riverbed level had gone down up to 8 metres under the bridge due to illegal mining in the area. “The department is chalking out strategy for restoration of the foundation. Soon the repair work will be started after closing the bridge for traffic,” he said.

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