Vadodara: Ten people lost their lives and several others were rescued after a portion of the Gambhira Bridge near Mujpur collapsed this morning, sending multiple vehicles tumbling into the Mahisagar River. As the tragedy unfolded, a Twitter post from two years ago has come to light, in which a user had highlighted the dilapidated condition of the same bridge.

In a social media post from May 2023, a Twitter user by the name of Snehal Patel had shared several videos and pictures of the decades-old bridge in a deteriorating condition. Tagging Gujarat Minister of State for Home Harsh Sanghavi and Union Road Transport Minister Nitin Gadkari, the user wrote, “Gadkari Sir, we Indians and the entire world appreciate your work. National highways are very good, but to travel on them, state roads should also be good. Something should be thought about that too.”

@Harsh_Office @nitin_gadkari @MORTHIndia गडकरी सर आपके काम को हम भारतीय और पूरी दुनिया मानाती हे राष्ट्रीय मार्ग बने वो वो बहुत ही अच्छे पर उसपे जाने के लिए राज्य के मार्ग भी अच्छे होने जरूरी है लिए भी कुछ सोचना चाहिए pic.twitter.com/MaiUHQOVaT

— Snehal Patel (@SnehalKanubhaiP) May 6, 2023

Sharing the video of the bridge, he had warned of a Morbi bridge collapse-like tragedy that could leave many dead. “The media will be bringing you breaking news very soon, be ready for coverage like they did in Morbi,” he had said.

@nitin_gadkari @sanghaviharsh @CMOGuj @tv9gujarati @gujratsamachar @HMofficeGujarat @VtvGujarati @GSTV @News18Guj @GujaratFirst @Zee24Kalak મીડિયા બહુજ જલ્દી તમારા માટે બ્રેકિંગ ન્યૂઝ આવશે જેવા મોરબી ના આવ્યા હતા કવરેજ માટે તૈયાર રહેજો pic.twitter.com/xjzsUSdLad

— Snehal Patel (@SnehalKanubhaiP) June 27, 2023

He also stated, “Sir, there is a big difference between the road that is seen in the photo and the actual road. If you ask any officer to do five rounds on this road, they will understand the condition the public is facing.”

Meanwhile, Vadodara District Collector Anil Dhameliya stated that the bridge had undergone repairs last year. Officials from the Roads and Buildings Department are en route to begin an investigation once rescue efforts are complete.

Furthermore, the difference between recent and old pictures of the bridge does indicate that some repair work was carried out. However, questions have now emerged regarding the quality of the repairs done on the decades-old bridge. As per news reports, repair work was also conducted two years ago after media reports highlighted the presence of potholes.

Notably, after the collapse of the Morbi bridge in 2022, the Gujarat High Court had instructed the state government to ensure that all bridges are in proper condition. The High Court also asked the government to provide a list of all bridges, specifying how many are in similar condition. A certified report was also requested to be submitted before the bench. DeshGujarat