In a huge relief, the operations to rescue the 41 workers trapped inside the collapsed Silkyara tunnel is heading towards sucess. According to officials in charge of the rescue, things are "moving in the right direction" and the "big news" may come tonight or tomorrow morning if things go as planned.
According to Additional Secretary Technical, Road and Transport Mahmood Ahmed, big news may come tonight or tomorrow morning if things go smooth. An iron rod has also come along with the debris. It is a matter of happiness that this iron in the middle of laying the pipeline did not create any problems for us," Ahmed told reporters.
Uttarkashi SP Arpan Yaduvanshi too said the progress has been really good since last night. "We have crossed 39 metres. Everyone is excited, the operation is moving in the right direction. If there are no obstacles ahead, we will quickly be able to rescue the trapped workers," he told ANI.
This comes as drilling with the drilling with the American auger machine resumed on Tuesday night to prepare an escape passage for the workers. However, the 900-mm diameter steel pipe was later replaced with 800-mm. It has just another 14 metres to go before the rescuers reach the trapped labourers.
The workers are healthy and their morale is high too. "Everything is fine. I have spoken to them (trapped workers). Their morale is high," former advisor to the PMO Bhaskar Khulbe told reporters in Silkyara.
On the a timeline for the evacuation, Khulbe said, "We hope to celebrate Igas with them". Igas is a festival celebrated in the Garhwal region after Diwali. It will take place on Thursday.
Meanwhile, Prime Minister Narendra Modi talked to Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami again on Wednesday morning to take updates on the rescue operations underway at the tunnel and food and other essentials, including medicines being supplied to the trapped workers through a new wider pipeline laid for the purpose.
Dhami briefed the prime minister about the positive progress made over the last 24 hours in the rescue efforts being carried out at the tunnel with coordination between the state government, the central agencies and the international tunnelling experts. "We are getting continuous guidance from the Prime Minister in this difficult situation. It provides us with a new energy every day to evacuate our trapped brothers safely at the earliest applying all our strength," Dhami said on X.
