The old bridge collapsed on Monday while a truck with heavy equipment was crossing it (File photo)
PITHORAGARH: The BRO on Saturday opened an alternative bridge for traffic, days after a bailey bridge collapsed nearly 50 km from the China-India border in Uttarakhand's Pithoragarh district. The alternative bridge, which is very important for high altitude villages of the district, was built in five days, a BRO official said. "The construction of the bridge has reconnected 15 high altitude villages with the sub-divisional headquarters at Munsyari and made it convenient for the security personnel who commute through the route," BRO official PK Rai said. The bailey bridge in Senargar on Munsiyari-Milam road had crashed on Monday when a truck carrying a JCB machine was crossing it, an official said. The truck driver and the JCB machine operator were injured as the 40-ft-long bridge, built in 2009, crashed under the combined weight of the truck and the JCB machine, Munsyari SDM AK Shukla had said.