Madhya Pradesh: Morbi-like incident averted as a cable of Mamleshwar Setu in Omkareshwar snaps

Omkareshwar (Madhya Pradesh): Ahead of Mahashivratri, a Morbi-like incident was averted in Omkareshwar, a holy town of Madhya Pradesh in Khandwa district thanks to the alertness of local administration as one of the cables of Mamleshwar Setu (a suspension bridge) connecting Bramhapuri end to Shivpuri end over Narmada river got snapped.

Taking cognizance of the matter, SDM Chander Singh and his team immediately stopped pilgrims on the bridge from both ends. According to SDM Chander Singh, the Narmada Hydroelectric Development Corporation Ltd (NHDC) used to take care of this suspended bridge connecting the northern bank to the southern bank of the river.

After the incident, NHDC engineers inspected the spot, and said that it will be fixed by Mahashivratri. 

SDM Singh informed that the wire was broken from the entry gate and that about half of the wire had broken and fallen into the river. As of now, the traffic is continuing from the second footbridge. 

Bridge was declared safe in recent inspection

Sources claimed that the 18-year-old suspension bridge was declared safe during the recent inspection conducted by the team of experts after the Morbi bridge collapse incident in Gujarat. Locals claimed that the suspension bridge was built in the 2004 Simhastha fair to ease the movement of devotees. The NHDC constructed the 235-meter-long Mamleshwar Setu (suspension bridge) at a cost of Rs seven crore. 

Notably, Omkareshwar Jyotirlinga is one of the twelve Jyotirlingas in the country, and every year, thousands of devotees from across the country visit the holy town on the auspicious occasion of Mahashivratri.