“I am Safe,” Responds Trapped Worker as Better Communication Established Inside Collapsed Tunnel

Manas Dasgupta

NEW DELHI, Nov 21: “I am safe, how are the parents?” responded one of the 41 trapped workers showing the indomitable spirit despite being confined haplessly behind collapsed rubble for the last 10 days with an uncertain future still staring at them.

The authorities, however, are confident that all the 41 trapped workers would be brought out safely sooner or later though as of now they are unable to fix a timeframe for completing the rescue operation giving the soil conditions of the terrain and the tricky task on hand.

The fresh five-point rescue plan is focussing on the horizontal drilling that will create a shaft, Lt Gen Syed Ata Hasnain, a member of National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) told reporters on Tuesday. He, however, refused to set a time frame for the rescue. “This is not an easy challenge, so we are exploring every option. All the teams are working on it, that is the only assurance I can give. Can’t establish the timeframe,” he said.

A tunnel-boring machine is being used from the front, and they are also trying to use blast to expand the mouth of the tunnel to insert a micro-boring machine inside, he said, underscoring that the focus right now is on “saving lives.” But the delay, he assured, would not pose any danger to the men. “There is sufficient water and oxygen inside. Power and ration were made available,” he said.

“There’s ample space inside. There is approximately 2 km space. Lighting is available inside. A 4- inch pipe was available which didn’t get destroyed so we had a lifeline,” he said at the press conference. Through this pipe, survival ration was pushed through air compression. Efforts have been to push medicine, he said.

To ensure the workers’ emotional well-being, the families of a few workers have been brought in also. “The families have been accommodated in the hotels in a built-up area. In one or two cases, they were even able to talk through it… the more the families talk to them, the better morale will be,” he said.

The men have been trapped after a portion of the 4.5-km tunnel on the Brahmakhal-Yamunotri National Highway collapsed. The tunnel — meant to join Silkyara and Dandalgaon in Uttarkashi — is part of the Char Dham project.

The workers, who managed to escape unscathed, are in a 400-meter buffer zone that lies behind 200 meters of rocky debris. Packages of food and water are being passed to them through a pipe after a wider pipe was installed on Monday. The men could get their first hot meal in days as Khichdi in bottles were passed down the pipe through air compression.

The rescue efforts, though have been hitting repeated roadblocks. Over the last week, several plans to cut through the 40-meter rock wall fell through. They also backfired twice, bringing down more rocks and rubble from the unplastered roof, extending the depth of the rock wall from around 40 to over 70 meters.

The last rock-fall took place on Friday, when attempts were made to use an American Auger drill flown in from Delhi. The drill machine that was being used, had broken down and work had to be stopped till a new one reached. The authorities, however, are pushing on with the Augur drill which cuts rock faster.

Under the current five-point plan, two tunnels are being drilled horizontally from the right and left sides of the main tunnel, while a vertical shaft will be drilled from the top. Five different agencies have been tasked with carrying out each part of the plan.

The authorities are being given advises by an international tunnelling expert team. Besides the national and the state disaster management authorities, a robotics team of the Defence Research Development Organisation (DRDO) is also at the spot.

Meanwhile, the government on Tuesday issued an advisory to private television channels, asking them to refrain from sensationalising the coverage of the rescue operations. The advisory, issued by the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, also told private television channels to be sensitive in their reportage, especially while putting out headlines and videos of the rescue operations, considering the psychological status of family members of the trapped workers.

“Telecast of video footage and other pictures relating to the operations by the TV channels specially by placing cameras and other equipment in close proximity of the rescue operations site have the potential to adversely affect the ongoing operations,” the advisory said.

It also advised the channels to refrain from sensationalizing the issue and from undertaking any live posts or videos from close proximity of the tunnel site where the rescue operations are underway. The advisory further asked news channels to ensure that the human life saving activity by the various agencies was in no way disrupted or disturbed by the very presence of cameramen, reporters or equipment near or around the operations site.

The advisory was issued after the first pictures of the trapped workers emerged on Tuesday from inside the tunnel. In a significant breakthrough, the rescuers were able to send a camera to the trapped workers early on Tuesday morning and capture their visuals for the first time, providing some relief to their families.

The images were captured by an endoscopic flexi camera pushed through the six-inch pipe inserted through the rubble last night to send food for them. Rescue officials were seen speaking to the workers through Walkie Talkies or radio handsets.

The camera and walkie-talkie connection with the workers was a significant development in the long-drawn rescue operation. In a video released by the authorities later showed that the workers, wearing yellow and white helmets, were receiving food items sent to them through the pipeline and talking to each other.

The brother of one of the workers said he was able to speak to him briefly. “He told me that they are safe. He also asked me about our parents,” Vikram Singh said after he spoke to his trapped brother Pushkar Singh through the walkie talkie. He said the officials had assured the families that the workers would be rescued soon.

The camera sent in has come as a big relief to the families of these workers. National Highways and Infrastructure Development Corporation Limited (NHIDCL) Director Anshu Manish Khalkho had earlier said cameras would be inserted through the pipeline to see how the workers were doing.

Later in the evening, an official said, the 6-inch pipeline to be used was to ensure adequate supply of food and medicine to workers trapped in Uttarkashi tunnel, adding that the focus was on horizontal drilling to rescue trapped workers.

The workers’ prolonged confinement in the tunnel has raised serious concerns about their health and well-being. Doctors have also emphasised the need for comprehensive rehabilitation for the trapped workers, fearing that the prolonged confinement may necessitate both mental and physical recovery processes.

Rescuers said significant progress had been achieved as a vertical drilling machine had reached the tunnel from the top. It took 13 hours and three vehicles to bring the machine to the spot.

The Prime Minister Narendra Modi spoke to Uttarakhand Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami again on Tuesday, the second day in a row, to enquire about the rescue operation. In a post on X, Mr Dhami said he told Mr Modi that the workers were safe and the Prime Minister underlined that the rescue mission was the topmost priority.

This is the fourth time that Mr Modi spoke to Mr Dhami to take stock of the rescue operation since the tunnel collapse on November 12. In his post, Mr Dhami said he informed the Prime Minister about the successful insertion of a 6-inch pipeline through the rubble which would be used for providing food in larger quantities and other necessary items to the workers.

“Honourable prime minister was informed about the conversation with the workers through the endoscopic camera and their wellbeing. The prime minister said it is our top priority to rescue all the workers safely,” Mr Dhami said.

According to officials, food items like porridge, khichdi, sliced apples and bananas can be sent in through the new pipeline. Also, mobile phones and chargers could be sent to the workers.