KARACHI: A portion of an under-construction flyover collapsed in Nusrat Bhutto Colony on Thursday causing panic among passers-by and residents of the locality.

Officials at the Shahrah-i-Noorjahan police station said that a small section of the flyover collapsed during the construction process near Bolan Hotel. No one was injured in the incident, they said.

SHO Ghulam Nabi Afridi said that the engineers concerned would be in a better position to explain the cause of the collapse. The officer said heavy construction material was being pitched on it when the portion caved in.

An Edhi Foundation spokesperson said that a pillar of the flyover could not withstand the load and caused the collapse.

The flyover is being built by a private housing society. It is meant for connecting North Nazimabad with Naya Nazimabad (in Manghopir). The two-kilometre flyover would facilitate fast movement of thousands of vehicles and help avoid congestion at Qalandaria Chowk and in neighbouring residential areas.

The Thursday incident drew strong reaction from opposition parties which called it “a true face” of development being claimed by the ruling Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP).

Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) MPA and deputy information secretary of the party Shahzad Qureshi demanded an inquiry against those officials who “made flawed design of the flyover” and those who allowed that without any technical analysis.

Published in Dawn, January 27th, 2023