Sources, however, claimed it is likely that the segment of the girder slipped from the tags of the crane while being launched and placed which had a capacity to haul over 150 tonnes or so resulting in the crash. The girders generally weigh around 70 tonnes, depending on the proportion of cement and steel inside them. L&T officials said the crane was new and imported from Germany.

“It is difficult to find skilled hands to operate such cranes. There are chances that the girder went off-balance while being launched,” said Dr Yogini Deshpande, a structural consultant. Transport experts said there are no regulations instituted by the government to train crane operators in a holistic fashion. It is the onus of the hiring company. “It seems the girder was U-shaped and it is possible that the equilibrium of the crane went off-balance,” said an official from a civic works body.