Current affairs

Anytime soon: 41 trapped workers in Uttarakhand tunnel are finally nearing to breath fresh air...All you need to know!

By alagu, 28 November, 2023
Uttarakhand, Uttarakhand tunnel collapse, Narendra Modi

After a fortnight of struggle for survival, 41 workers who trapped inside an Uttarakhand tunnel are all set to breath fresh air as the efforts to rescue them are getting close to mark their success. By the time of writing this content, we are told that the workers would be brought out the debris anytime soon and along with the family members of the workers, the entire nation is waiting with bated breath to welcome them.

The workers got stranded under the rubbles after an under-construction tunnel in Silkyara in the Uttarkashi district of Uttarakhand got collapsed on November 12. Though the relief works began soon, the mission with machineries didn't yield an expected result, prompting the government to resort to the manual drilling. A team of rat miners began manual drilling earlier this week and produced a significant progress towards rescuing all the trapped men. 

Over two weeks after the tragic incident, the authorities on Tuesday officially reported that they have gone very close to the trapped men and that those workers would be reached within hours. While it was measured that the workers will go home before Christmas, which indicated a longer progress of the rescue operation, the development that the rescuers reached close to the trapped men has certainly given hope to the families and the nation. 

After a breakthrough of establishing communication route with the workers and providing them the essentials including oxygen, food, and water that armed their battle for survival, the team of rat miners had made a remarkable achievement of getting very close to the trapped men, decreasing the weight of longer wait and despair endured by the family members. 

During the morning hours of Tuesday, the authorities said that of the 60-metre stretch of rubble, the rescuers had drilled about 53 metre and that they would reach the trapped men on Tuesday evening. The more they drilled, the brighter the light at the end of the tunnel and as hours passed, the government had made essential arrangements to welcome the workers.

Several ambulances were stationed inside the tunnel and a team of doctors from AIIMS were brought to the site to test the health and vitals of the workers and to treat them. The families of the workers are also told to be ready to welcome them. Earlier, while speaking to the reporters, L&T team leader and tunnelling expert Chris Cooper predicted an early end of the workers' ordeal. 

Cooper said, "It is likely that they will be out before 5 pm", adding that the vertical drilling, which was the simultaneous drilling operation to reach the workers from above the tunnel, had been callef off. While addressing a press conference, retired Lt Gen Syen Ata Hasnain, who is a member of National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA), said, "There are 41 people inside (tunnel) and outside there are several people who are involved in the rescue work, safety and security these people are equally important. We are not in any hurry."

"It will take about three to five minutes to pull out one individual each. So, it will take about three to four hours to rescue all 41 workers," Hasnain added. With the view of treating all the trapped workers, adequate beds and healthcare equipment have been installed at the Community Health Centre in the town of Chinyalisaur in Uttarakhand. 

Exhibiting that the union government is closely watching the mission and is taking all possible efforts to rescue the trapped men, Prime Minister Narendra Modi's Principal Secretary PK Mishra, Union Home Secretary Ajay Bhalla, and Uttarakhand Chief Secretary SS Sandhu visited the tunnel on Monday and took stock of the rescue operation. Mishra spoke to the trapped workers and assured them that multiple agencies were at work to evacuate them and they should remain patient. 

 

You may also like

Comments