November 12, 2023…It is very difficult to forget this date. A landslide occurred in Uttarkashi, Uttarakhand and the main road of the Silkyara tunnel being built here was blocked by debris. 41 workers were trapped inside. After this, the country’s biggest rescue operation began. The people trapped inside came out after 17 days.
As the day was passing, hopes were breaking. 41 people were trapped inside the tunnel. Officers from outside were encouraging them, but nothing was coming out of it. The whole country was praying for just one thing that the people trapped inside the tunnel come out safely. After 17 days, the country’s biggest rescue operation was completed. All the people trapped inside the tunnel came out safely. This story is of the Uttarkashi tunnel accident in Uttarakhand a year and a quarter ago, the memories of which have been refreshed by the incident in Telangana.
There is Srisailam Left Bank Canal (SLBC) in Nagarkurnool, Telangana. A part of the roof collapsed in its under-construction area on Saturday morning. Eight workers are trapped inside the tunnel. According to an officer, an attempt was made to contact the trapped workers by calling their names after going some distance inside the tunnel, but no response was received. A 200-meter section has been completely closed due to debris. Water is accumulated in the area between 11-13 km in the tunnel. Four teams have been called to carry out this operation. This accident happened about 14 km inside the entry point of the tunnel. A similar accident happened in the Silakkara tunnel of Uttarkashi on November 12, 2023, which became the center of discussion in the country and the world.
When did the accident happen in Uttarkashi?
November 12, 2023… Silakkara tunnel of Uttarkashi… Suddenly there was a landslide and the tunnel route was closed with debris. 41 workers were trapped inside. A big rescue operation was carried out to get the people trapped inside the tunnel out. Big machines were brought to remove the debris. Initially it seemed that the rescue would happen soon, but the days went by. After 17 days the workers came out of the tunnel. The only relief was that everyone was safe.
The country’s biggest rescue operation
According to the workers trapped in the tunnel, their shift was about to end at 8 o’clock. Then they heard a loud sound. It was 5 in the morning. When they rushed there, debris had fallen on the way out of the tunnel. The mouth of the tunnel had been closed. After this, the country’s biggest rescue operation began…
After the accident on November 12, contact was established with the workers on November 13. Oxygen was supplied inside the tunnel through a pipe. After this, drilling work started through an auger machine. During this time, food was supplied to the workers with the help of a pipe. The auger machine also failed. Then a new drilling machine was ordered. On November 17, when the new machine also did not work, another auger machine was ordered.
The workers came out through the pipe
After a week, on November 21, the first video of the workers trapped inside the tunnel came out. During this time, the workers said that they were safe. On November 25, manual drilling work was started again. On the 26th, machine drilling work was started from the hill above Silkyara tunnel. During this time, the workers kept digging vertically. After this, the date of 28 November came, when a big pipe was sent inside the tunnel. The workers came out through this pipe.
Many organizations including the army helped in the rescue
This rescue operation was carried out by many other departments and organizations along with NDRF-SDRF. The help of the army was also taken. The Army and the Air Force helped in taking the high-tech rescue and digging machines to the tunnel. The officers and employees of the district administration also remained fully engaged. The Prime Minister of the country Narendra Modi, CM Pushkar Singh Dhami and CMs of many states kept taking updates of this accident every moment.
