DEHRADUN: The operation to rescue the 41 labourers trapped in a tunnel in Uttarakhand for the last 16 days continued on Monday with a team of the Satluj Jal Vidyut Nigam Limited (SJVNL) successfully completing vertical drilling up to a depth of 21 metres. According to the rescue team, a total of 86 metres of drilling has to be done, which will take an estimated three days.
The labourers were trapped when a portion of an under-construction 4.5-km-long tunnel collapsed in Silkyara-Dandalgaon village in Uttarkashi district in the early hours of Diwali on November 12. With snowfall having started around Yamunotri Dham and the rainy season continuing in low-lying areas, the rescue team is faced with a challenging task.
Col Deepak Patil, who is in charge of the rescue team, told The New Indian Express, "After the ongoing rescue operation from inside the tunnel suffered a setback, the rescue teams intensified the all-round rescue operation with renewed vigour on Sunday." While the removal of the trapped blades was expedited inside, the drill was started from above. At the same time, the work of creating an escape route from the other end of the tunnel has also been expedited.
"The SJVNL team has started vertical drilling in 1.2 metres diameter above the tunnel," NHIDCL MD Mehmood Ahmed told the media. "A drilling rig has a capacity of 40 metres of drill, after which the rig will be replaced," he added.
According to official sources in Silkyara, four explosions have been carried out from the other end of the tunnel and 10 metres have been excavated. Now, all the members of the rescue team are praying that there is no further interruption as the operation nears its end.
Timeline of rescue operation:
November 14: Drilling began inside the tunnel to rescue the labourers.
November 16: Drilling began with the second US auger machine after the first one failed. Hopes grew when it reached 18 metres.
November 20: A 6-inch pipe successfully penetrated inside the tunnel, raising hopes of a 900 mm pipe reaching inside.
November 21: The operation advanced as telescopic cameras were delivered inside and visuals of the workers were seen. After the 900 mm pipe got stuck at 22 metres, the work of inserting an 800 mm pipe from inside it started.
November 22: The 800 mm pipe reached more than 36 metres.
November 24: When the smell of gas cutter smoke reached the workers while cutting the iron trapped inside the 800 mm pipe, the hopes of evacuating them increased further.