Rescue and relief efforts have begun at the Silkyara Tunnel, which is on the Uttarkashi-Yamnotri route, in a race against time after a part collapsed on Sunday morning, trapping some 40 workmen inside.
The workers buried beneath the rubble are able to communicate with the rescue crew, according to Prantiya Rakshak Dal (PRD) member Ranveer Singh Chauhan.
“Work is moving along quite quickly. It’s a pretty hard effort for all of them. Yesterday, we were disappointed that we were unable to get in touch with individuals who were stuck. However, after that, we were able to speak with them,” Chauhan remarked.
Mritunjay Kumar, a loader operator participating in the rescue operations, gave an update on the continuing operations, stating that the crew is employing excavators and other heavy machinery to remove the rubble.
“Mucking is currently in progress. We’re using the loader and excavator for mucking. A section of the tunnel, about thirty to thirty-five metres long, is broken. Around 5:30 am, the incident took place. We have heard reports of 40–45 individuals being stranded. Everyone is secure,” said Kumar.
According to Arpan Yaduvanshi, the superintendent of police for Uttarkashi, the collapse happened between six and seven in the morning, when a section of the tunnel that was being built to connect Silkyara and Dandalgaon gave way. It is estimated that the impacted area is situated approximately 200 metres from the origin on the Silkyara side of Brahmakhal-Polgaon.
Citing representatives of the contracted organisation in charge of tunnel construction, the Hydroelectricity Investment and Development Company Limited (HIDCL), Yaduvanshi had originally estimated that there were 36 workmen trapped in the tunnel.
A list of the 40 workmen who were trapped inside was later made public by the District Emergency Operation Centre, nevertheless. They hail from Himachal Pradesh, Bihar, Jharkhand, Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal, Odisha, and Uttarakhand.
As part of the Char Dham all-weather road project, oxygen is being poured into the collapsed section of the tunnel through a water pipe so that the trapped workmen do not have trouble breathing, according to Yaduvanshi.
The police and a team from the State Disaster Response Team (SDRF) are in charge of the current rescue efforts. Border Roads Organisation and Indo-Tibetan Border Police teams led by Commanding Officer Naman Narula and Assistant Commandant Jadhav Vaibhav were roped in later to assist the rescue efforts.
