All 41 workers trapped inside the Silkyara tunnel in Uttarakhand since November 12, has been successfully rescued. The process of rescuing the remaining workers trapped inside Silkyara tunnel in Uttarakhand since November 12. The first worker among the 41 workers trapped inside Silkyara tunnel in Uttarakhand since November 12, has been successfully rescued.
Forty-one workers trapped in Uttarakhand's Silkyari tunnel are now two metres from escaping their underground prison of 17 days, Lieutenant General Syed Ata Hasnain (retd.), a member of the National Disaster Management Authority, told press Tuesday afternoon. Rescue teams racing to save the 41 men are clearing the final few metres of debris - thanks to the banned manual "rat-hole"-mining technique employed after high-tech machines, or augers, failed to drill through nearly 60 metres of rock - and lay two-feet wide pipes to create an escape route. He said, "According to me, it will take the entire night to complete this operation..."
On evacuation of trapped workers from Silkyara tunnel, Lt Gen Syed Ata Hasnain (Retd), Member, NDMA says, "It is estimated that it will take 3-5 minutes to evacuate each of the 41 persons. The entire evacuation is expected to take 3-4 hours. Three teams of NDRF will go in ise the tunnel to organise the evacuation. SDRF will provde support. Paramedics will also go inside the tunnel at the time of evacuation." Workers expected to come out soon; temporary medical facility built inside the tunnel. Rescue workers broke through the 60-metre stretch of rubble in Silkyara tunnel in Uttarakhand on Tuesday, ending the ordeal of 41 workers trapped inside for 16 days. A senior Uttarakhand official at the site said drilling was complete.
Garlands brought to Silkyara tunnel rescue site in anticipation of early rescue of 41 trapped workers.
A portion of the tunnel collapsed on November 12, blocking the exit 41 workers inside.
Uttarakhand Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami said that the pipe laying work inside the Silkyara tunnel where the efforts to bring out 41 trapped workers is underway has been completed. "With the blessing of Baba Baukh Nag Ji, prayers of crores of countrymen and the tireless work of the rescue teams engaged in the rescue operation, the work of laying pipes in the tunnel to take out the workers has been completed. Soon all the labourers will be taken out," CM Dhami said in a post on X. During a press briefing earlier today, the Nodal Officer for the Silkyara rescue operation and Secretary to the Uttarakhand government, Neeraj Khairwal, also said that if there are no more hurdles, the rescuers are anticipating an early evacuation of the trapped labourers.
 "LIVE: All 41 workers trapped inside Silkyara tunnel successfully rescued")
