Rescue efforts have entered the final stages to safely evacuate 41 workers trapped inside the collapsed Silkyara tunnel at Uttarkashi in Uttarakhand. Our correspondent reports that trapped workers are expected to be rescued by this morning.
The rescue team has managed to push the pipe over 45 meters deep inside the Silkyara tunnel, leaving only 12 meters of rock and debris to be cleared before the rescue operation can be completed. All resources have been deployed for the safe retrieval of individuals. Medical teams are on standby for health check-ups of workers.
Earlier, the rescue team ed a 57-meter-long, 800-meter diameter pipe inside the tunnel with the help of an Augur machine to evacuate the workers. The workers have been trapped under the debris inside the tunnel since the 12th of this month after a portion of an under-construction tunnel from Silkyara to Barkot caved in following a landslide.