HYDERABAD: Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy on Sunday said that the fate of the eight workers trapped in the Srisailam Left Bank Canal (SLBC) tunnel remained unknown.
He visited the SLBC project site and inspected the rescue operations being carried out by various agencies. Later, he along with Irrigation Minister N Uttam Kumar Reddy and Tourism Minister Jupally Krishna Rao reviewed the situation with the rescue teams.
“Experts have not come to any conclusion regarding the trapped persons. We do not know whether they are still alive or dead. It will take two to three days to get a clear picture and the rescue operations are continuing,” the chief minister explained and said that the government was ready to extend every possible support to the families of the trapped workers.
He said that mechanical parts were found during the digging in the tunnel by the rat miners at the place which was mapped by the NGRI as the possible location of the trapped persons. The rescuers tentatively identified the whereabouts of the workers, but have not reached a firm conclusion, the CM added.
Speaking to reporters, he explained: “Mud and water are filling the tunnel. Due to the damaged conveyor belt, the rescue teams are not able to bring out the mud. Rescue operations will be sped up after repairing the conveyor belt.” He said that he had instructed the officials to use robots, if necessary, to carry out the rescue operations.
Describing the tunnel collapse as an unexpected and unfortunate accident, Revanth said: “All should rise above political differences and come together to face this difficult situation and show sympathy to the families of the victims.” He said that 11 agencies with support from private organisations were participating in the rescue operations.
BRS govt neglected SLBC works: Revanth
“By 2014, 33.5 km of tunnel work was completed. Due to the negligence of the previous government, there was no progress. In one instance, there was non-clearance of bills by the government. The contracting agency failed to pay power bills, leading to disconnection of electricity to the project works,” Revanth alleged and reiterated the government’s commitment to continuing the SLBC works.
“We will repair the tunnel boring machine, which was damaged due to the accident. At the same time, we will continue work from the other side,” he said.
“Where is KCR? As opposition leader, why is he not responding to this incident? When the mishap happened, BRS MLA Harish Rao was in Dubai enjoying a party. I dare him to keep his passport in the public domain,” the chief minister said. On the Opposition blaming his government for the SLBC mishap, Revanth recalled that when nine people died in the Devadula tunnel accident, no bodies were found for five years.
Meanwhile, during the review meeting, officials explained that due to the dense forest and difficult geographical conditions, the rescue operations were delayed. They briefed the CM about the present situation inside the tunnel. They said that 6,000 cusecs of water was flooding the tunnel. If the operations continue at the current pace, it will take 10 more days, they pointed out.
The chief minister advised rescue teams to prepare an action plan to prevent such accidents in the future. He asked them to chalk out a permanent solution to avoid similar mishaps. Recalling his visit inside the tunnel from the other side five years ago, Revanth said that he had an idea about the working of a TBM.
“There are two issues in this incident. One is how to bring out the trapped workers, and the other is the condition of the TBM,” he said.