The anticipation for the rescue of 40 workers marooned on the opposite end of an approximately 30-meter debris pile in an under-construction tunnel in Uttarkashi has been further prolonged due to a malfunction in a horizontal drill machine. A substitute auger machine, in a dismantled state, was air-lifted by three C-130J Hercules IAF planes to the Chinyalisaur airstrip on Wednesday and subsequently transported 25 km by road to the accident site. The machine is presently being reassembled to recommence drilling and advancing steel pipes, measuring 2.7 ft and 3 ft in width, through the rubble. The incident occurred on the Silkyara side of the 4.5 km tunnel, concluding at Dandalgaon on the Yamunotri National Highway.
Concurrently, rescue teams have reached out to crisis management experts in Norway and Thailand. The Thailand Rescue Company, with a successful record in the 2018 Tham Luang Nang Non cave rescue, has been consulted. Additionally, guidance is being sought from the Norwegian Geotechnical Institute on navigating the compromised tunnel. Protests erupted near the site by some family members and laborers expressing dissatisfaction with the rescue delay, although administration officials managed to pacify them.
NHIDC director Khalkho expressed shared concern, stating that everyone is actively working until the safe rescue of the workers. District Magistrate Abhishek Ruhela advised patience to the families of the stranded laborers. The initial auger machine managed to insert about 3 meters of pipe into the debris before encountering a mid-operation halt, and its progress was deemed too sluggish.
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