At least 18 people were killed and over 50 were trapped after an under-construction flyover collapsed on Tuesday, May 15, near Varanasi Junction railway station in Uttar Pradesh. Seven teams of National Disaster Response Force lead the search and rescue operations.
Many cars were buried under the heap of rubble, district officials said, adding that the death toll could go up.
According to reports, the flyover was being constructed by Uttar Pradesh State Bridge Corporation. Meanwhile, UP Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath has announced a compensation of Rs 5 lakh for the kin of those dead and Rs 2 lakh for seriously injured in the incident.
Adityanath has also set up a three-member committee to probe the incident. "The CM has expressed grief and has directed the administration to speed up rescue operation," UP Health Minister Siddhartha Nath Singh said.
Meanwhile, Prime Minister Narendra Modi has condoled the loss of lives in the incident. "Extremely saddened by the loss of lives due to the collapse of an under-construction flyover in Varanasi. I pray that the injured recover soon. Spoke to officials and asked them to ensure all possible support to those affected," Modi tweeted.
I spoke to UP CM Yogi Adityanath Ji regarding the situation due to the collapse of an under-construction flyover in Varanasi. The UP Government is monitoring the situation very closely and is working on the ground to assist the affected.
— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) May 15, 2018
