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Morbi municipality chief officer suspended over bridge collapse
A senior government official said on the condition of anonymity that some procedural lapses were found in the agreement between the firm and civic authorities.
The Gujarat government on Friday suspended Morbi municipality chief officer Sandeepsinh Zala in connection with the collapse of a heritage bridge in the city on October 30 that claimed 135 lives.
HT has seen a copy of the suspension order, issued by the Gujarat urban development and urban housing Department.
Oreva Group, which has been maintaining and operating the bridge since 2008, entered into an agreement with the Morbi municipality on March 7 for maintenance, renovation and operation of the suspension bridge for a period of 15 years. This contract replaced one that expired in 2018 with the same group. The bridge was closed for almost two years (part of 2020 and almost all of 2021) on account of the Covid-19 pandemic.
A senior government official said on the condition of anonymity that some procedural lapses were found in the agreement between the firm and civic authorities. According to the provisions in the Gujarat Municipality Act, such agreements need to be approved by the board of the municipality by passing a resolution.
Also read: Morbi bridge was proposed to reopen after temporary repairs in 2020: documents
“The agreement signed with Oreva group had the condition //that it had to be approved by the board of Morbi municipality at their next meeting,” said the March 7 agreement, which HT has seen.
But a second official, who has worked with Morbi municipality, said that the board resolution was never passed, thereby constituting a procedural lapse.
“The provisions of the Gujarat Municipality Act clearly defines how the administrative affairs and business are to be carried out. And every decision has to be in a form of resolution passed by majority of votes in the board meeting of the elected representatives of the people. This is as close as one can get to being illegal,” said the second official, requesting anonymity.
Oreva Group was the operations and maintenance contractor for the Jhulta Pul or suspension bridge from 2008 to 2018 as per an agreement between Oreva group representative and Morbi municipality. The term of the agreement ended in 2018, following which Oreva group managing director Jaysukh Patel approached the Morbi municipality for renewing it.
The bridge required an expenditure of about ₹2 crore for maintenance and repairs before reopening and Patel proposed to recover the amount by raising the ticket fee from ₹15 and ₹10 (for adults and children, respectively) to ₹17 and 12 for the first year. “In August 2020, Oreva’s proposal for reopening the bridge with a higher ticket fee was turned down by the board,” said the second official quoted above.
The agreement was signed only earlier this year, though.
According to the second official quoted above, while the agreement was signed on March 7 between Oreva representatives and Morbi municipality, the understanding was that the bridge would reopen only after the municipality board signed off.
The agreement, a copy of which has been seen by HT, said the entire cost of renovation and repairs of the bridge would be borne by Oreva Group and that it would take 8-12 months of time for it to be reopened to the public. A ticket system has been in place at the 142-year-old footbridge many decades now to avoid overcrowding.
“Before it was reopened recently, the bridge witnessed not more than 100-150 people in an entire day even during festive seasons. On normal days the numbers were much less,” the second official said.
The suspension order issued by the Gujarat urban department says that the government as well as a special committee are investigating the role of Oreva , the contractors involved in the repair work, and municipality officials in connection to the bridge collapse tragedy on October 31.
Zala was the chief officer (Ward-2) of Morbi municipality, when the incident took place and to ensure a free and fair investigation, he has been suspended, the order said.
Gujarat Police filed a First Information Report under IPC sections 304 and 308 (culpable homicide not amounting to murder) in the bridge collapse tragedy as per which more than 250-300 people were on the footbridge at a time and that the bridge split in two from the middle.
The bridge was reopened on October 26, the Gujarati New Year day, by Jaysukh Patel and his family members. The fact that the bridge was open for four days without the consent or knowledge of government authorities and that appropriate action was not taken could also be a reason for Zala’s suspension, said the first official.
Also read: Morbi: Officials drain river in mission similar to Thailand cave rescue op
“We have no idea whether the fitness certificate was issued to the company for reopening the bridge or not,” Zala told media persons on October 31. He claimed that Oreva Group reopened the bridge without the municipality’s consent.
The authorities have no information on the kind of material which was used by the company for renovation work, according to Zala.
In a letter dated August 8, 2020 to the Morbi collector, Oreva Group said it would open the temporarily repaired bridge if their earlier contract was not renewed and they were not awarded a permanent contract for maintenance and management of the bridge. HT has reviewed a copy of the letter.
Earlier this week, Zala appeared before the Deputy SP PS Zala, the investigating officer, and submitted some crucial documents related to the contract given to Oreva for the bridge renovation.
A Morbi municipality official said that previously, visitors were allowed to go in small batches.
The police have so far arrested a total of nine people in connection with the tragedy.
The government has constituted a five-member committee headed to probe the bridge collapse incident. “The committee is working on the investigation and is yet to complete its report and submit it to the government,” said a fourth official aware of the matter.
