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Jammu-Srinagar highway: Portion of under-construction tunnel collapses in Ramban
Workers were not present at the site when the overhead soil lost its grip and came down inside the 400-m under-construction tunnel in Ramban’s Marog area
A portion of an under-construction tunnel along the Jammu-Srinagar national highway cave-in in the Marog area of Ramban district, officials said Sunday. In a respite, however, no loss of life or injury has been reported.
Workers were not present at the site when the overhead soil lost its grip and came down inside the 400-m under-construction tunnel late on Saturday night, the official added.
After the incident, a police team rushed to the spot. Giving out more details, a police officer said, “It was an under-construction tunnel in the Marog area. Around 15 metres of it collapsed last night around 10.30 pm.”
A local resident, meanwhile, said the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) has outsourced the work to a construction company, which in turn, sub-let the work to a local contractor.
“There were no safety measures or arrangements for light inside the tunnel and the police had asked the contractor’s local staff to make arrangements for the same to carry out searches,” the officer added.
The caved-in portion is about 100 metres inside the tunnel from the Ramban side. According to the officials, such happenings are routine during tunnel construction work and a team of experts inspected the spot.
A police official said a detailed report, also covering the safety and lighting arrangements, is being prepared.
The tunnel in question is being constructed as a part of the Jammu-Srinagar National Highway’s larger four-laning project.
Notably, at least 10 labourers had lost their lives after another under-construction tunnel had collapsed in Ramban district earlier on May 21 this year. The, being built on the highway near Khooni nullah, in Ramban district, was also part of the four-lane project.
