Injured Woman Dies, Railways Announces Rs 500,000 Ex Gratia Payment
A woman who received injuries in the Andheri bridge collapse on July 3, succumbed to her wounds on Saturday, 7 July, in Cooper Hospital, Mumbai. The railways has announced an ex gratia amount of Rs 500,000 to the family of the woman who succumbed to her wounds today evening. A Western Railways spokesperson said that all the medical expenses will be borne by the railways, and all the assistance will be given to obtain the compensation.
Audit of Bridge was Conducted in November 2017
Railways Minister Piyush Goyal an audit of this particular bridge was conducted in November 2017. A spokesperson of Western Railway told PTI that "no structural flaw was found in the audit".
Onus is On Railways: BMC
The BMC said it was the Railways' responsibility to regularly check and maintain the 47-year-old road overbridge in suburban Andheri a portion of which collapsed on Tuesday.
The Gokhale road overbridge (ROB), built in 1971, collapsed near the eastern side of the Andheri railway station and part of it fell on rail tracks this morning.
The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) said the area where the mishap took place falls under the Railways' jurisdiction.
"The area where a portion of the bridge collapsed comes under the Railways. Therefore, it was Railways' duty to conduct a safety audit and carry out maintenance of the bridge," a senior BMC engineer said.
Railways to Undertake Safety Audit of 450 Bridges
The Railways on Tuesday announced to undertake a safety audit of nearly 450 road overbridges, foot overbridges and bridges over the pipelines here to detect and rectify any flaws in them.
Railways Minister Piyush Goyal made the announcement in suburban Andheri where a portion of a road overbridge (ROB) collapsed this morning due to heavy rains.
A joint safety audit will be conducted by the Railways, the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) and IIT-Bombay of the 445 ROBs, foot overbridges (FOBs) and bridges over the pipelines in Mumbai as part of efforts to improve safety of commuters, Goyal said.
Railway Minister Rewards Motorman for Averting Mishap
Railway Minister Piyush Goyal on Tuesday, 3 July praised motorman Chandrashekhar Sawant who saw a snapped overhead electric line and stopped a local train avoiding a bigger mishap.
“I would like to thank motorman Chandrashekhar Sawant who stopped the train as soon he saw an over head electric line snap and averted a bigger mishap. He will be awarded Rs 5 lakh,” said Goyal.