India's Gujarat state suspends senior local administrator for bridge collapse

FILE PHOTO: A security personnel stands near a damaged suspension bridge after it collapsed on Sunday, in Morbi town in the western state of Gujarat, India, November 1, 2022. REUTERS/Stringer/File Photo

MORBI, India (Reuters) - A senior administrative official in the Indian town of Morbi has been suspended by the Gujarat state government following the collapse of a bridge that led to the death of 135 people, the chief minister's office said on Friday.

The colonial-era suspension footbridge in Morbi, over the Machchhu river, was packed with sightseers around the Diwali and Chhath Puja festivals when it gave way on Sunday, sending people plunging about 10 metres (33 feet) into the water.