Railways didn't conduct safety audit of Andheri ROB: Fadnavis

The Railways didn't conduct the safety audit of the Gokhale bridge in suburban Andheri in Mumbai, part of which had collapsed earlier this month, Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis told the Assembly today.

He also assured action against the officials responsible for the July 3 incident in which one person was killed and local train services were badly affected.

"The bridges within railway premises, though constructed by the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC), should be maintained by Railways and it is supposed to conduct a safety audit as well.

"Railways maintained the (Gokhale Road) bridge on regular basis but they did not conduct its safety audit," he told the House in response to questions raised by legislators.

Fadnavis said the BMC has completed structural audit of 304 bridges under its jurisdiction.

According to the chief minister, 114 of these 304 bridges are in good condition, 111 require minor repairs, while 61 need major repairs.

The remaining bridges need to be reconstructed, according to the audit report, he said.

As per a railway probe, corrosion of steel brackets and piling of additional weight allowed by the civic body Brihanumbai Municipal Corporation led to the partial collapse of the Road Over Bridge (ROB).