Rescuers on boats search in the Machchu river next to a cable suspension bridge that collapsed in Morbi town of western state Gujarat, India (Ajit Solanki/AP)Police in western India arrested nine people on Monday as they investigated the collapse of a newly repaired 143-year-old suspension bridge in one of the country’s worst accidents in years, officials said. The collapse on Sunday evening in Gujarat state plunged hundreds of people into a river, killing at least 134. The same month, Oreva closed the bridge, which spans a wide section of the Machchu river, for repairs. Sandeepsinh Zala, a Morbi official, told the Indian Express newspaper the company reopened the bridge without first obtaining a “fitness certificate”. A Gujarat state government election is expected in coming months and opposition parties have demanded a thorough investigation of the accident.

Source: Irish Independent November 01, 2022 01:49 UTC