Uttarakhand tunnel collapse: CM Dhami, Gadkari to inspect rescue op today

Amid ongoing efforts to rescue workers trapped in the Uttarkashi Tunnel, a portion of which had collapsed earlier, Uttarakhand Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami will conduct an on-site inspection of operations on Sunday, the Chief Minister’s Office said ( CMO) through an official release.

The CM will be accompanied by Union Minister Nitin Gadkari during his visit to the tunnel site on Sunday.

“Along with the Prime Minister, Union Minister Nitin Gadkari also arrived to take stock of the relief and rescue efforts,” the CMO added in her statement.

On Saturday, a top official of the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) took stock of the relief operations at the under-construction Silkyara Tunnel on the Uttarkashi-Yamnotri road.

The local government said on Saturday it would deploy a tree felling expert as part of ongoing efforts to free 40 workers who have been trapped in the tunnel for seven days.

A tree felling expert, Ashiq Hussain, was called to the tunnel site by the Forest Department, officials said on Saturday.

Officials added that they tried to reach the workers by drilling vertically from the upper part of the tunnel.

“We tried to reach them horizontally, now we are going to try vertically too. A spot just above the tunnel has been identified and marked. From there a hole will be drilled to reach there. The depth of the hole would be about 300-350 his. feet… The horizontal rescue attempt would also start from the Barkot end of the tunnel,” said Uttarkashi DFO DP Baluni.

Sharing details about the ongoing rescue operation, Bhaskar Khulbe, a former advisor to the PMO, told ANI, “Efforts are on to strengthen the strength of the entire area so that it remains completely safe for laborers to approach the rescue work that we plan. I believe our joint effort will yield good results in the next four to five days.”

Also on Saturday, Chris Cooper, a microtunneling expert, arrived at the Silkyara Tunnel incident site to monitor and oversee the rescue operation.

Cooper is a Chartered Engineer with an experienced track record in the delivery of major international civil engineering infrastructure, metro tunnels, major caverns, dams, rail and mining projects.

“I have no information at the moment. I arrived here only last night (Friday),” he told ANI.

“The heavy drill, which was expected to arrive from Indore on Saturday, has also reached the Silkyara tunnel site,” said Cooper, who is also a consultant for the Rishikesh Karnprayag railway project.

The under-construction tunnel between Silkyara and Dandalgaon on the Brahmakhal-Yamunotri national highway collapsed in the early hours of November 12.