DOGRA HERALD BUREAU
UTTARAKHAND, Nov 28
Celebration erupted outside the under-construction Silkyara tunnel in Uttarakhand on Tuesday night as rescue workers successfully brought out all the 41 labourers trapped inside for the last 17 days.
The extraction process began in the evening after a team of five-six rat-hole miners finished the drilling work and pushed a 700 mm rescue pipe towards the trapped workers.
A few personnel from the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) had first gone down the pipe to assess the condition and guide the workers through rescue protocols.
Uttarakhand Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami and Union Minister V.K. Singh, who were at the site to oversee the rescue mission, met the workers who were brought out on specially modified stretchers.
Dhami was seen distributing sweets to officials and rescue personnel.
Those rescued were given the initial first aid at the temporary medical facility set up at the site and later shifted to a nearby hospital.
“I am completely relieved and happy as 41 trapped laborers in the Silkyara Tunnel Collapse have been successfully rescued,” Road Transport Minister Nitin Gadkari posted on X.
“This was a well-coordinated effort by multiple agencies, marking one of the most significant rescue operations in recent years. Various departments and agencies complemented each other despite facing numerous challenges.,” he said.
The workers were trapped inside the tunnel being between Silkyara and Dandalgaon following a landslide at the site on November 12.
