Uttarkashi Tunnel Collapse: The 41 workers trapped under the rubble of a partially collapsed tunnel in Uttarakhand's Uttarkashi communicated with the outside world on Tuesday for the first time in nearly 10 days with the help of a six-inch pipeline inserted through the debris by the rescue team. During the day, visuals from an endoscopic flexi camera inserted through the pipeline confirmed that all those trapped under the collapsed section of the Silkyara tunnel were safe.
The trapped labourers have so far struggled through limited supplies of food, water, and oxygen in a potentially claustrophobic space with a strong resolve to make it out alive of the ordeal that has got the whole nation praying for their safety. Their perseverance was on display earlier in the day when one of the trapped individuals asked the rescuers present outside to record a message for his mother.
While speaking to the supervisor at the incident site, Jaidev, who is among the 41 labourers currently trapped under the rubble, said in Bangla, "Please record, I will tell something to my maa. Maa, tension koroni aami thik achi. Time a kheye nebe. Babakeo time a kheye nite bolbe (Mother, do not worry about me, I am fine. Please you and father eat your meals on time)."
(Rescue team officials establish audio-visual contact with the workers trapped in the Silkyara tunnel for the first time through the pipeline and endoscopic flexi camera, in Uttarkashi on Tuesday. Pic credits: ANI)
Some of the other trapped workers also established contact with their relatives, and despite being trapped in the tunnel for 10 days now, they displayed unparalleled patience and courage as they asked their relatives to not worry about them. Meanwhile, Bajrang Dal (Jammu and Kashmir) organized Havan Yagya for the safety of the 41 trapped workers, news agency ANI reported.
(With inputs from ANI)