Rats Cause Sinkhole On Indore’s Shastri Bridge, Create 5-Foot-Deep Hole In 75-Year-Old Structure

The bridge, already too narrow for the city’s growing traffic, has long been recommended for replacement with a wider structure. (Pic: X)

A major safety concern has emerged in Indore after rodents were found to have caused the collapse of a section of the decades-old Shastri Bridge, one of the city’s oldest structures. The incident occurred on Sunday morning on the stretch leading from Gandhi Pratima towards Shastri Market, creating a large sinkhole and forcing authorities to divert traffic.

According to a report by The Times of India, the collapse left a pit about five feet deep and six feet long near the footpath, with the inner section of the bridge completely hollowed out and reinforcing bars exposed.

The bridge first showed signs of instability around 10 am on Sunday, when a small depression appeared before the road suddenly caved in.

Rajendra Rathore, in charge of the Indore Municipal Corporation (IMC) Public Works Committee, told TOI that a severe rat infestation had likely weakened the bridge. “We have sent a team to the spot. There are a lot of rats there,” he said. “They have made burrows and are hollowing out the soil beneath the bridge, which likely caused the collapse,” Rathore was quoted as saying by Times of India

IMC Commissioner Dilip Yadav said a technical team was assessing the extent of the damage to plan repairs and restoration. Built in the early 1950s, the 75-year-old Shastri Bridge was Indore’s first single-lane bridge.

Despite repeated appeals for maintenance, authorities have not undertaken major repairs in recent years. The bridge, already too narrow for the city’s growing traffic, has long been recommended for replacement with a wider structure.

The collapse has caused significant disruption and renewed calls for a citywide safety audit of ageing infrastructure.