In the challenging rescue operation at Uttarakhand’s Silkyara tunnel, where 41 workers have been trapped since November 12, a team of rat-hole mining experts has been brought in to assist. After a modern drilling auger machine got stuck in the rubble, authorities switched to traditional rat-hole mining techniques. Around six experienced miners from Delhi and Ahmedabad are manually drilling horizontally through the rubble, removing 6-7 kg of debris per round. They are equipped with essential tools like spades, shovels, and oxygen masks for the operation.
Twelve experts are involved in excavating the last 10-12 meters of debris in the collapsed tunnel. So far, vertical drilling has reached a depth of 36 meters, completing about 40% of the required 86 meters. The rescue effort, which started on Diwali after the tunnel collapse due to a landslide, might include drilling the remaining stretch manually or creating a vertical escape passage.
International tunneling expert Arnold Dix is involved in the rescue mission and has promised to get the workers out by Christmas, a month from the reported date.