Uttarakhand tunnel collapse highlights: Manual drilling begins, PM Modi prays for safe evacuation

Twelve rat-hole mining experts will be involved in manual drilling and excavation horizontally through the last 10- or 12-metre stretch of debris of the collapsed portion of the under-construction tunnel on Uttarakhand's Char Dham route.

This drilling was earlier being carried out by a huge auger machine that got stuck in the rubble on Friday, forcing officials to focus on an alternative option -- drilling down from above the tunnel. About 40 per cent of the 86-metre vertical drilling required is now done.

"When we are praying to God today and talk about human welfare, then we have to pray for all those worker brothers who have been trapped inside a tunnel in Uttarakhand for the past two weeks," PM Modi said.

"But, we have to complete this relief and rescue operation with lot of alertness. Nature is continuously giving us challenges in this effort. But, we are standing firm. We are making efforts round-the-clock. We have to pray for the safe evacuation of those workers and to do it as early as possible," he added.

At Hyderabad, PM Modi said he prays for safe evacuation of 41 workers trapped in Uttarakhand tunnel.

Mahmood Ahmad, additional secretary, MoRTH, said, “36 metres of drilling by SJVNL has been completed. We will have to do it 50 metres more.”

Neeraj Khairwal, Uttarakhand government secretary, said, “After we removed the parts of the machine which were stuck, the pipeline, which was damaged and had to be cut 1.9 metres, has been pushed in three phases , 0.22 metres, 0.5 metres, 0.2 metres (total 0.9 metres) using the rat mining technique (manual excavation) in last two hours. The speed of pushing the pipeline can vary…”

A delegation led by Principal Secretary to Prime Minister, Pramod Kumar Mishra took stock of ongoing efforts to rescue 41 trapped workers in the Silkyara tunnel in Uttarkashi on the 16th day of the operations.

Union Home Secretary Ajay Kumar Bhalla and Uttarakhand Chief Secretary SS Sandhu along with Pramod Kumar Mishra inspected the work inside the tunnel.

The Principal Secretary also enquired about the food items sent to the workers trapped inside the tunnel. PK Mishra also spoke to the trapped workers and their families.

Microtunneling expert Chris Cooper confirmed today that the auger machine debris has been entirely cleared, paving the way for the initiation of manual drilling within the next few hours to reach the trapped labourers.

National Highways and Infrastructure Development Corporation Limited (NHIDCL) Managing Director Mahmood Ahmad on Monday informed that the work of the vertical drilling at Uttarkashi tunnel where 41 workers remained trapped will be completed by November 30.

Addressing a press conference in Uttarkashi, Mahmood Ahmad said, "We have completed around 30 meters of drilling. The current machine that has been deployed can drill around 40-45 meters. We have brought two more machines for this purpose. SJVNL has brought those machines. Changeover machines will take time. We are expecting vertical drilling work would be completed by November 30."

With the rescue operations making swift progress, robotics expert Milind Raj on Monday said that the mental well-being of trapped workers will be monitored through robots, adding that they are using homegrown indigenous technology for the same.

"I am here for the mental well-being of the 41 workers stuck in the Silkyara tunnel. This is a homegrown indigenous technology. Now the robots will monitor their mental health. We have systems to monitor the health of workers round-the-clock," Milind Raj said.

"Internet service will also be provided. This rescue robotic system will help detect hazardous gases inside, like methane," he added.

The robotic expert said that he held discussions with the officials engaged in the rescue operations regarding the ongoing rescue operation, adding that the team will implement the best possible solutions.

"This robotic system has three things. It has a gas detection system; apart from this, it will provide internet service and also monitor the health of the trapped labourers from a distance of 100 metres from its position," he said.

"With the help of this, we can work to improve their mental condition. Before this, a building had collapsed in Lucknow, in which 14 people were saved alive. We used the same robotic system in the operations," he added.

"There is no other way left except the manual method and this is also the safe one through which we can reach the labourers. In the current situation, the Auger machine that was stuck has been removed. Efforts are underway to remove the 1.5 meters of the damaged pipe. After its removal, strengthening and muck clearance, skilled labourers will go in with the help of the army. We hope this will be done soon," Lt. Gen Harpal Singh (retd) said.

On Silkyara tunnel rescue, Mahmood Ahmad, MD- National Highways & Infrastructure Development Corp Ltd said, "We are working on multiple options simultaneously. We should not see this as vertical drilling vs horizontal drilling. Our aim is to rescue the men."

ANI

A delegation led by Principal Secretary to Prime Minister, Pramod Kumar Mishra took stock of ongoing efforts to rescue 41 trapped workers in Silkyara tunnel in Uttarkashi on the 16th day of the operations.

Union Home Secretary Ajay Kumar Bhalla and Uttarakhand Chief Secretary SS Sandhu along with Pramod Kumar Mishra inspected the work inside the tunnel.

The Principal Secretary also enquired about the food items sent to the workers trapped inside the tunnel. PK Mishra also spoke to the trapped workers and their families.

Around 70 meters of vertical drilling is left, after which a pipe will be inserted in the tunnel to lift out the trapped workers.

The weather department has issued a rainfall alert in Uttarkashi, which might delay the start of manual drilling on the tunnel collapse site.

The rain can pose a new challenge in the rescue operations of the Uttarakhand tunnel collapse, as it can potentially hamper the vertical drilling of the rubble.

In major progress, 31 metres of vertical drilling is now complete, and the manual drilling is set to commence soon.

Principal Secretary to the PM Pramod Kumar Mishra, Union Home Secretary Ajay Kumar Bhalla and Uttarakhand Chief Secy SS Sandhu have arrived at the Uttarakhand tunnel collapse site to take stock of the situation.

A team of rat miners has been assembled to start the manual drilling of the collapsed tunnel, in supervision of the Indian Army.

After the removal of the auger machine, the damaged pipe is being removed from the tunnel, said the officials.

The damaged parts of the auger machine have sucesfully been removed from the tunnel, taking the rescuers one step closer to the trapped workers.

Authorities have said that if no obstructions are faced by the team, the vertical drilling of the tunnel may be over by Thursday this week.

After the pipe is successfully installed into the tunnel after vertical drilling, the trapped workers will be lifted using buckets dropped into the pipe, one by one.