New Delhi: “The whole world is helping,” said Professor Arnold Dix, President of the International Tunneling and Underground Space Association, as he arrived Sunday to lend his expertise to the rescue of 41 workers trapped within a collapsed tunnel in Uttarakhand’s Uttarkashi district since 12 November.
“Great work is being done. This is going to happen and we are on it. The whole team is here. We are going to find a solution and get them out,” Dix said, as he surveyed the tunnel Monday.
He added that a lot of work had been done since Sunday when the central government announced a five-option evacuation plan for the workers.
The men have been trapped inside Uttarkashi’s Silkyara-Dandalgaon tunnel for eight days now after a portion of it collapsed some distance away from the Silkyara opening.
Dix said the “real experts on this geology are here. Here in the Himalayas.”
“The plans are looking fantastic… The tunnel is good. The work going on is very systematic. Food, medication, and air is being put through,” he added.
#WATCH | Uttarkashi (Uttarakhand) tunnel rescue operation | International Tunneling Expert, Arnold Dix says "We are going to get those men out. Great work is being done here. Our whole team is here and we are going to find a solution and get them out. A lot of work is being done… https://t.co/ta5cXfBRyv pic.twitter.com/Mfwkxu5UbJ
— ANI (@ANI) November 20, 2023
The Centre has roped in five agencies to create access to these men from all sides. These include the Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC), Satluj Jal Vidyut Nigam (SJVN), Rail Vikas Nigam Limited (RVNL), National Highways and Infrastructure Development Corporation Limited (NHIDCL), and Tehri Hydro Development Corporation Limited (THDCL).
Multiple agencies are already pushing food through a four-inch compressor pipeline, while the NHIDCL has begun work on creating another six-inch pipeline for supplies. The government said Sunday that 39 metres of the 60-metre clogged stretch was completed.
It is learnt that the RVNL has started working on another vertical pipeline for the supply of essential items. The NHIDCL continues to drill from the Silkyara end, while THDC will start work of micro-tunnelling from another end (Barkot).
The SJVN is focussed on drilling from the top of the tunnel, as is the ONGC from the Barkot end.
Meanwhile, Prime Minister Narendra Modi spoke to Uttarakhand Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami Monday and assured him of all support for the ongoing rescue operation.
He told Dhami that the morale of the trapped men needed to be kept up, according to a statement issued by the chief minister’s office.
This is the third time that Modi has spoken to Dhami about the rescue operations. A team from the Prime Minister’s Office is also keeping an eye on the operations after visiting the tunnel for an on-the-spot review.
The 4.5-kilometre Silkyara tunnel, a seven-hour drive from state capital Dehradun, is part of the Centre’s ambitious Char Dham all-weather road project for better connectivity to the state’s pilgrimage spots.
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