While hopes of survival of the eight workers trapped inside the under-construction tunnel in Telangana is diminishing with each passing hour, rescuers have inched closer to those trapped, with only 40 metres of debris remaining to be cleared to reach them. Rat miners who played a crucial role during the Uttarakhand Silkyara tunnel collapse rescue operation have also reached the site.
#WATCH | Nagarkurnool, Telangana | Latest visuals from Srisailam Left Bank Canal (SLBC) tunnel where rescue operation is underway
— ANI (@ANI) February 23, 2025
(Source: Irrigation and Civil Supply Minister Uttam Kumar Reddy’s Office) pic.twitter.com/Wm0M0PRy2Y
Addressing presspersons, Telangana Tourism Minister Jupally Krishna Rao said the chances of survival of the eight persons trapped inside the Srisailam Left Bank Canal (SLBC) for the past two days were "very remote”. "To be honest, the chances of their survival are very, very, very, very remote. Because, I myself went up to the end, almost just 50 metres short (of the mishap site). When we took photographs, the end (of the tunnel) was visible. And, out of the 9-metre diametre (of the tunnel)--almost 30 feet, out of that 30 feet, mud has piled up upto 25 feet", he told PTI. "When we shouted their names also, there was no response...”, the minister added.
#WATCH | Nagarkurnool, Telangana | On rescue operations for Srisailam Left Bank Canal collapse, District Collector Badhavath Santhosh says, "Dewatering is being done... Indian Army, along with NDRF and SDRF are going inside with additional equipment... Our major focus will be on… pic.twitter.com/qDsuzCEolL
— ANI (@ANI) February 24, 2025
The trapped persons include four labourers, two engineers and two operators. The trapped persons have been identified as Manoj Kumar and Sri Niwas from Uttar Pradesh, Sunny Singh (Jammu and Kashmir), Gurpreet Singh (Punjab) and Sandeep Sahu, Jegta Xess, Santosh Sahu and Anuj Sahu, all from Jharkhand.
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The Telangana government has brought in rat miners who were involved in the rescue of construction workers trapped inside the Silkyara Bend-Barkot tunnel in Uttarakhand in 2023.
Meanwhile, District Collector Nagarkurnool District Collector Badhavath Santhosh said rescuers are now engaged in clearing debris in the last 40 metres. “Dewatering is being done and the Indian Army, along with NDRF and SDRF, are going inside with additional equipment,” the collector said. He added the focus is now on rescuing all workers and additional equipment has been deployed to clear debris in the last 40 metres.
Meanwhile, the opposition Bharat Rashtra Samiti slammed Chief Minister A. Revanth Reddy for not visiting the incident site yet.
