Silkyara tunnel: Drilling remains suspended for yet another day, Nitin Gadkari reviews rescue operation
Drilling to prepare an escape passage for 41 workers — trapped at Silkyara tunnel collapse site for a week now — remained suspended on Sunday, while Union Minister Nitin Gadkari who reviewed the rescue operation said another large diameter pipeline was being pushed through the rubble to provide essential supplies to them. An American auger machine which was brought as a replacement had to be stopped on Friday afternoon after it hit some hard surface while drilling through the rubble in the collapsed part of the under-construction tunnel, following which officials on Saturday began preparations to drill a vertical hole from the top of the hill.
However, Gadkari said horizontal digging seems to be the «best option» and if the auger machine does not encounter any obstacles «it might reach the trapped workers in two-and-a-half days».
The minister said the workers are trapped in an area of the tunnel where they can move around.
They have electricity, open space, food, water and oxygen.
«Saving the trapped workers and evacuating them at the earliest is the biggest priority,» the minister, who was accompanied by Uttarakhand Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami, said at a press conference in Silkyara after holding a meeting with experts.
No drilling had begun at the site till Sunday evening but officials said preparations are on to restart the auger machine to bore through the rubble and insert large diametre steel pipes to prepare an escape route for the trapped workers.
«Preparations are underway to restart the auger machine and resume drilling and pipe laying at the tunnel. Apart from one pipe through which food is being supplied to the trapped workers, another large-diameter pipe has also been pushed up to 42 metres to
