Six Labourers Killed as Under-Construction Bridge Collapses in UP’s Hamirpur During Storm

Six labourers were killed and three others injured after a portion of an under-construction bridge over the Betwa river collapsed during a storm in Uttar Pradesh’s Hamirpur district early Friday, officials said. The incident has once again drawn attention to how India’s rapid infrastructure expansion continues to be shadowed by concerns over construction quality and worker safety standards .

The collapse occurred around 3 am between Parsani and Kandaur villages , when several labourers engaged in bridge construction were reportedly sleeping on the upper slab of the structure . The slab suddenly gave way amid strong winds and heavy rainfall , trapping workers under debris.

Rescue teams pulled out the victims from the rubble. Six workers were declared dead on the spot, while three injured labourers initially trapped under a pillar were rescued and admitted to the district hospital in Hamirpur .

The deceased have been identified as Lokendra (22), Kuldeep Nishad (19), Sawant Yadav (28), Sabhajeet (30), Pushpendra Chauhan (34), and Rajesh Pal (42) .

Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath expressed grief over the tragedy and directed officials to ensure prompt relief, rescue operations and medical treatment . He also announced ex-gratia compensation of ₹5 lakh each for the families of the deceased and ₹50,000 for the injured .

Hamirpur District Magistrate Abhishek Goyal said the bridge was being constructed by a private company and the project had been underway for nearly two years. He added that weather warnings had been issued by the IMD and district administration on Thursday evening , with alerts communicated to villages about impending storms and strong winds.

Police said the bodies have been sent for postmortem, while debris clearance operations are underway to ensure no other workers remain trapped.

The incident adds to a growing list of construction-related accidents in India’s infrastructure push , highlighting persistent gaps in site safety enforcement, compliance during extreme weather, and on-ground worker protection measures , despite repeated regulatory advisories.