Re-audit structures, fix blame on responsible officials by today evening: CM on FOB collapse
I have ordered the Municipal Commissioner to affix the ‘primary responsibility’ on the officials and police will lodge separate first information reports against them, CM said
Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis has sought an immediate probe to “fix primary responsibility by the evening” on all those behind the foot-over-bridge (FOB) collapse outside CSMT.
The CM also ordered for a “revisit of the safety audits”, which had declared the Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus (CSTM) bridge “safe”.
The FOB collapsed around 7:30 pm on Thursday, leaving six dead and over 30 injured.
Visiting the injured at various hospitals in south Mumbai, a grim Fadnavis said “it was an extremely serious matter” that the bridge which had already undergone a structural audit had crashed suddenly.
“This also raises questions on the audits conducted on the city bridges… The structural and safety audits carried out on all the bridges need to be revisited.
“I have also ordered the Municipal Commissioner to affix the ‘primary responsibility’ on the officials and police will lodge separate first information reports against them,” Fadnavis assured.
Detailed enquiry will follow but I have asked the BMC Commissioner for preliminary enquiry and fix the responsibility by today evening itself : CM @Dev_Fadnavis on visiting St. George Hospital, Mumbai pic.twitter.com/kMaYRZTjnu
— CMO Maharashtra (@CMOMaharashtra) March 15, 2019
In a related development, BMC Commissioner Ajoy Mehta has ordered the Vigilance Department to submit a preliminary report within 24 hours, identifying the Municipal staff responsible and responsibility of structural auditor for the incident.
The civic body has already removed slabs from the structure and is currently in the process of removing the remaining portions, which include the metallic frame of the bridge.
Meanwhile, Mumbai Police have registered cases against BMC and Indian Railway officials charging them with negligence and culpable homicide in the bridge which crashed barely six months after the structural audit cleared it suggesting minor repairs.
Also Read: CSMT foot-over-bridge collapse: All developments until now
