“Aaram se nikal jaoge, koi chinta ki baat nahin hai (You will be rescued soon, there is nothing to worry about)”—one of the rescue officials told a labourer, who is trapped in the under-construction tunnel that collapsed on the Char Dham route, as the operation to evacuate 40 workers entered its third day.
The rescue also asked labourers, who had been trapped in the tunnel in Uttarakhand’s Uttarkashi since Sunday morning, if they needed anything.
Aapko kuch chahiye…: Rescue officials contact a worker trapped under the Uttarkashi tunnel debris. #Exclusive #uttarkashi #accident #uttarakhand #india #breakingnews #tunnelaccident #tunnel #news pic.twitter.com/LYOOm7Vrei— News18 (@CNNnews18) November 14, 2023
Disaster Management Secretary Ranjit Kumar Sinha said that authorities have set a target to rescue the trapped workers by Tuesday night or Wednesday.
900 mm Pipe, Auger Machine: How 40 Trapped Workers Are Being Rescued from U’khand Tunnel
6-Member Panel to Probe Collapse
Meanwhile, the Uttarakhand government has constituted a six-member expert committee to probe the incident which took place after a part of the tunnel being built between Silkyara and Dandalgaon on the Brahmakhal-Yamunotri National Highway caved in on Sunday morning following a landslide.
Trapped Labourer Speaks to His Son
Gabbar Singh Negi, one of the 40, spoke to his son on Tuesday. “I was allowed to speak to my father for a few seconds using the pipe through which oxygen is being supplied to the stranded workers,” Akash Singh Negi told PTI. The conversation lasted just a few seconds, he said.
“He said they were safe. He asked us not to worry as the company is with them,” Akash said.
Akash came along with his uncle Maharaj Singh Negi and three others from Uttarakhand’s Kotdwar to enquire about his father’s well-being.
Gabbar Singh, who hails from Bishanpur near Kotdwar, is among the two persons from Uttarakhand trapped inside the tunnel along with 38 others.
WHERE THE INCIDENT HAPPENED?
A portion of the tunnel being built between Silkyara and Dandalgaon on the Brahmakhal-Yamunotri National Highway caved in on Sunday morning. Several workers were trapped in the Silkyara Tunnel.
Uttarkashi Superintendent of Police, Arpan Yaduvanshi said a part of the Silkyara Tunnel has broken about 200 meters ahead of the starting point, trapping many workers.
HOW MANY WORKERS ARE TRAPPED?
Of the 40 workers trapped inside the tunnel, 15 are from Jharkhand, 8 from Uttar Pradesh, 3 from West Bengal, 5 from Odisha, 2 each from Uttarakhand and Himachal and 4 are from Bihar.
Rescue operation teams have established communication with workers using radio handsets along with supplying oxygen, water and food. Those trapped inside have sent out signals to the teams that indicate they are safe, an official at the site said.