PATNA, May 10 -- The Road Construction Department (RCD) of Bihar has ordered an urgent safety audit of all major bridges across the state following the recent collapse of a span of the iconic Vikramshila Setu in Bhagalpur. Officials said on Saturday that the exercise, as per the instruction, must be completed within the next 72 hours, starting from Sunday.

The move aims to address growing concerns over the structural safety of old and ageing bridges, particularly as the monsoon season is set to arrive later next month. RCD Secretary Pankaj Kumar issued an instruction to carry out the safety audit after a high-level review meeting on Saturday. "Senior officials and engineers were told to immediately assess the condition of existing infras...