A week after the collapse of the under-construction, 4.5-km-long Silkiara two-way tunnel on the Yamunotri national highway, relief teams are yet to see any results in their efforts to rescue the 41 stranded labourers.
Meanwhile, Deputy Secretary in the Prime Minister's Office Mangesh Dabral has reached Silkyara to take stock of the situation, while Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami has called an emergency meeting of senior officials at the secretariat and reviewed the relief operations.
The National Highways and Infrastructure Development Corporation Limited (NHIDCL) is facing complexities in carrying out drilling to evacuate labourers trapped in the under-construction Silkiara tunnel for a week.
NHIDCL faced more embarrassment as, on the seventh day of the rescue on Saturday, it came to light that a 41st laborer has also been trapped. So far, the company had provided a list of only 40 stranded laborers to the administration.
According to the daily briefing of company officials, "The names and addresses of 40 workers were provided to the administration by NHIDCL and Navayuga Construction after a tunnel collapse accident on November 12, but late on Friday night it was revealed that not 40, but 41, workers were trapped in the tunnel."
The 41st laborer has been identified as Deepak Kumar, a resident of Gijas Tola in Muzaffarpur, Bihar.
Meanwhile, experts from an Australian consultancy company associated with Rail Vikas Nigam Ltd have reached Uttarkashi to help in the rescue operation.