Authorities in Kolkata have arrested three officials of a construction company and suspended two engineers in connection with the highway overpass collapse in the city, as the death toll in the accident rose to 27.
Local police, who launched an investigation against unnamed officials at IVRCL on charges of murder and criminal conspiracy, had detained 10 officials for questioning, the IANS news agency reported on Saturday.
Derek O'Brien of the Trinamool Congress party - which governs the state of West Bengal, where Kolkata is located - said three of the officials were arrested late Friday night.
They would be produced before a local court that would determine whether they are to be formally charged and face trial in the case.
The state government also suspended two engineers from the Kolkata Metropolitan Development Authority, which was IVRCL's joint venture partner in the project.
News that makes sense
Your trusted source for staying up-to-date with the world around you. Get free daily news updates and analysis, straight to your inbox.
About 100 metres of the overpass, which was under construction, collapsed in the busy Burrabazar district in central Kolkata Thursday, burying pedestrians, cars and rickshaws underneath it.
Rescue teams have recovered three more bodies at the accident site since Friday night, taking the death toll to 27, officials at the control room of the National Disaster Response Force said.
At least 71 people were injured in the collapse and five people remained in serious condition.
"We do not expect to find any survivor. We have to check one more portion of debris before concluding our operations. The death toll could increase but not markedly," NDRF official YS Sengar said by phone from the site.
Amid mass outrage over the tragedy, opposition politicians alleged government agencies had ignored warnings about the faulty design of the overpass.
IVRCL has denied any wrongdoing and has called on the Kolkata police to investigate other possible causes for the collapse, including a bomb attack.
