The Gujarat High Court has directed Oreva Group in Morbi to provide lifetime pension to the families who lost their sons and jobs to widows of the victims of the bridge collapse in which at least 141 people were killed after a hanging bridge snapped in the town last year.
The Oreva Group, a local manufacturer of wall clocks and electronic appliances, was responsible for operation and maintenance of the colonial era bridge, a local tourist attraction in Morbi town.
The division Bench of Chief Justice Sunita Agarwal and Justice Aniruddha Mayee was hearing a suo motu PIL on the incident that took place on October 30, 2022 in which the British-era suspension bridge collapsed.
According to the government, there are 10 women who were widowed and seven children who were orphaned in the bridge tragedy.
“Give jobs to widows, or stipend if they do not want to do jobs. You have to support them throughout their life. You have completely upturned their life. They may not be in a position to work. There are women who have never worked, never went out of their homes. How can you expect them to come out of their home and go to work somewhere?” Chief Justice Agarwal told the firm.
While the company claimed it was taking care of orphans and widows, the HC wanted to know what was it doing about elderly men who lost their young sons on whom they were dependent.
“Elderly males... were dependent upon the earnings of their sons... What is support for them? Give them lifetime pension,” the court told the company, which had taken a contract from the local civic body for the operation and upkeep of the bridge.
“One-time compensation is not going to help you. Please keep it in mind. This is a scar for life. One-time compensation may not be in a position to help them...There has to be some recurring expenditure by the company,” the court observed.
The HC Bench also observed that a trust be created for disbursal of compensation to the affected people, as it may not be possible for the court to monitor the process for years. It also asked the government to suggest ways by which needs of the victims’ families can be met.
The HC directed the Morbi District Collector to coordinate with the company and submit a report about the prevailing condition as well as the status and financial condition of the victims’ families and the kind of support they need.
When the company complained that the victims’ hostility and allegations of tampering with evidence was hampering its work with them, the court ordered it to approach them through the Collector.
When the company’s lawyer complained about delay in hearing of regular bail plea of its CEO and managing director Jaysukh Patel and urged it to consider his “plight,” the court said the word “plight” should remain for those who have suffered because of its role, which has been made clear in the special investigation team (SIT) report.
“After going through the SIT report, can you argue what you are arguing? It was your act, you were the company, you...replaced wooden plank with aluminium... After SIT report, you are not allowed to speak at all. You cannot argue you are the sufferer, you cannot place your problems before us,” the court said.
Earlier, an SIT constituted by the State government had submitted a report in which it held the Oreva Group responsible for the tragedy. The probe team found that there was no proper renovation work done by the company before reopening it for public, no figment certificate was obtained and no professional or experts were involved in repairing and renovation works of the bridge.
