The inauguration of 43 strategically important bridges built by the Border Road Organisation (BRO) in border areas, including seven in Ladakh, has been postponed owing to state mourning, informed the Ministry of Defence on Thursday.
Defence Minister Rajnath Singh was scheduled to inaugurate the 43 BRO bridges across seven states and Union Territories on Thursday, but the Defence Ministry postponed the event in view of the death of Suresh Angadi, the Minister of State (MoS), Railways.
Lt Col Harsh Wardhan Pande, the Defence spokesman, had earlier informed that of the 43 bridges constructed by the Border Roads Organisation, 10 are in Jammu and Kashmir, eight each in Uttarakhand and Arunachal Pradesh, seven in Ladakh, four each in Punjab and Sikkim, and two in Himachal Pradesh.
The Defence Minister was also scheduled to lay the foundation stone of Nechiphu tunnel to Tawang in Arunachal Pradesh. The tunnel is expected to shorten the travel time to Tawang, 448 km northwest of state capital Itanagar and bordering China.
The MoS Railways succumbed to COVID-19 at New Delhi's All India Institute of Medical Sciences on Wednesday, becoming the first member of the Council of Ministers to die of the deadly disease.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday expressed deep condolences over the death of Angadi.
President Ram Nath Kovind too expressed shock at the sudden demise of Angadi.
"Shri Suresh Angadi was an exceptional Karyakarta, who worked hard to make the Party strong in Karnataka. He was a dedicated MP and effective Minister, admired across the spectrum. His demise is saddening. My thoughts are with his family and friends in this sad hour. Om Shanti," the Prime Minister tweeted.
"Shocked to know the passing away of Shri Suresh Angadi, Union Minister of State of Railways. An amiable leader Shri Angadi worked tirelessly for the people of his constituency, Belagavi and Karnataka," he tweeted.
The 65-year-old leader was admitted to AIIMS on September 11 after testing positive for COVID-19, ahead of the commencement of the Monsoon Session of the Parliament.
He was undergoing treatment under Neeraj Nischal in the trauma centre of the apex medical institute. He breathed his last at 8 p.m. and is survived by his wife and two daughters.