Uttarkashi tunnel collapse: Drilling begins to create escape passage for trapped workers

Uttarkashi: Rescue workers on Tuesday began the process of inserting wide steel pipes through the rubble of the collapsed under-construction tunnel on the Char Dham route to bring out the 40 labourers trapped inside for two days, officials said.

Drilling to insert the pipes has begun with the help of an ‘auger machine’, Uttarkashi District Magistrate Abhishek Ruhela told reporters.

“If everything goes as planned, the trapped labourers will be evacuated by Wednesday,” he said after visiting the tunnel and taking an update on the operations from officials at the site.