Three labourers died after an under-construction bridge of the bullet train project collapsed in Gujarat’s Anand district, said a fire official on Tuesday. Dharmesh Gor, Anand Fire Officer, said the fire department rescued two labourers and two dead bodies during the rescue operation, however, one of the rescued labourers died in the hospital.
“We received a call that a bridge has been broken at the bullet train project site near Rajupura in which two to three persons have been trapped. Fire brigade teams have reached the spot, and we have cleared the debris two rescued people have been sent to the hospital, out of which one has died. Two dead bodies have also been recovered… A total of three people have died in the incident…” he said.
A detailed technical enquiry is being undertaken to ascertain the cause of the incident. Earlier, National High-Speed Rail Corporation Limited said, “Today evening at Mahi River, at the construction site of bullet train project three laborers were trapped in between concrete blocks. A rescue operation is in progress using cranes and excavators. One labour has been rescued and has been recovering in the hospital.”
The bridge is a part of the Mumbai-Ahmedabad Bullet Train Project, a 508-kilometer corridor that aims to transform high-speed rail travel in India by connecting two of the country’s largest economic hubs with a top speed of 320 km/h.
After the completion of the corridor, the distance between Mumbai and Ahmedabad will be reduced to about two hours, down from the current six-hour journey by conventional rail. Mumbai-Ahmedabad High-Speed Rail (MAHSR) passes through high growth rate States of Gujarat and Maharashtra connecting business centres of Mumbai, Surat, Vadodara and Ahmedabad. The sanctioned cost of the MAHSR project is ₹1,08,000 crore.