At least 141 people have died after a pedestrian bridge over a river collapsed in India’s western state of Gujarat.
Local officials said there was overcrowding on the bridge at the time as people were celebrating the Diwali festival. It is believed that most of those who died were women, children or elderly people.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Television footage showed dozens of people “clinging on to the cables and twisted remains of the bridge as emergency teams struggled to rescue them,” said The Guardian. “Some clambered up the broken structure to try to make their way to the riverbanks, while others swam to safety.”
The 230-metre (750ft) bridge, which was built during British rule in the 19th century, had been closed for repairs for six months and was reopened to the public last week.
The Times of India reported that the preliminary police report said the bridge was reopened for tourists despite the bridge maintenance agencies knowing that their “callous approach” to the recent renovation work may lead to human deaths.
“Questions are being asked about whether safety checks were done before the bridge was reopened,” said the BBC. Home minister Harsh Sanghavi said a number of criminal cases had been registered over the incident.
The families of the victims will receive compensation from the National Relief Fund, according to PM Narendra Modi, who said his “heart is filled with love and is with the families of those suffering”.
-
How China is battling the chikungunya virusUnder The Radar Thousands of cases of the debilitating disease have been found in the country
-
Deep thoughts: AI shows its math chopsFeature Google's Gemini is the first AI system to win gold at the International Mathematical Olympiad
-
Book reviews: 'Face With Tears of Joy: A Natural History of Emoji' and 'Blood Harmony: The Everly Brothers Story'Feature The surprising history of emojis and the brother duo who changed pop music
-
India's fake weddingsUnder The Radar New party trend promises all the fun of a wedding without any of the downsides
-
How China uses 'dark fleets' to circumvent trade sanctionsThe Explainer The fleets are used to smuggle goods like oil and fish
-
One year after mass protests, why are Kenyans taking to the streets again?today's big question More than 60 protesters died during demonstrations in 2024
-
China looms large over India and Pakistan's latest violenceIN THE SPOTLIGHT Beijing may not have had troops on the ground, but as South Asia's two nuclear powers bared their teeth over Kashmir, China eyed an opportunity
-
Kashmir: India and Pakistan's conflict explainedThe Explainer Tensions at boiling point in the disputed region after India launched retaliatory air strikes on its neighbour
-
India strikes Pakistan as tensions mount in Kashmirspeed read Pakistan's Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif called it an 'act of war'
-
Kashmir: on the brink of a 'catastrophic' warTalking Point Relations between India and Pakistan are 'cratering' in the aftermath of a shocking terror attack in the disputed border region
-
What happens if tensions between India and Pakistan boil over?TODAY'S BIG QUESTION As the two nuclear-armed neighbors rattle their sabers in the wake of a terrorist attack on the contested Kashmir region, experts worry that the worst might be yet to come
