Ganga bridge in Kanpur collapses: ‘A crucial piece of history’ falls

A large part of the old bridge over the Ganga, between Kanpur and Unnao, collapsed and fell into the river on Tuesday morning.
The bridge, constructed in 1874 by engineers of the East India Company, had been sealed in 2021 during the pandemic after cracks were found in its pillars, and it was declared unsafe.
For nearly 100 years, this bridge was the sole connection between Kanpur and Lucknow via Unnao. A bridge built over the Ganga in Jajmau in the late ’70s helped reduce the load on the old bridge.
Officials in the public works department (PWD), which had maintained the bridge, said that nearly 30 meters of the 1,380-meter-long bridge collapsed on its own, early on Tuesday.
“The bridge was assessed as unsafe in 2021 and was sealed on the orders of the then district magistrate, Alok Tiwari,” said the officials. “The PWD engineers found that the pillars, or kothis, had developed deep cracks, and any further use could have caused a tragedy. By that time, the new bridge from the Gola Ghat side had been completed and was made immediately operational.” Currently, nearly 1.25 lakh people use the Gola Ghat bridge every day.
Even after its closure, access to pedestrians and cyclists was allowed on the lower part of the iron bridge. That corridor had also been sealed, and five-foot walls were erected at the entry points in Kanpur and Shuklagunj, Unnao.
The bridge was originally made of iron, and a road was later laid above it, raising its height to facilitate the movement of vehicular traffic. The entire structure was built on 27 full-gauge brick pillars, which had a life expectancy of 100 years. After the road was laid, the iron bridge was not maintained, causing the metal to rust, sources said.
Before it was closed, the bridge bore the load of 22,000 four-wheelers, two-wheelers, and nearly one lakh people who worked in Kanpur. It was 12 meters wide and 1.38 km long from end to end.
Historians say the East India Company commissioned the bridge in 1866, following the First War of Independence. The British had been using pontoon bridges to enter Kanpur, which became redundant during floods, making the movement of troops and goods towards Lucknow extremely difficult, said historian Manoj Kapoor.
The East India Company engineers completed the bridge in 1874, in seven years and seven months. A parallel bridge for the movement of trains on a narrow-gauge line was built in 1910.
“This bridge is a part of history and played a crucial role in the economic rise of Kanpur. It was a gateway to Awadh. I hope the government will restore this crucial piece of history,” said Kapoor.