In a move to ease progress inside the Tapovan tunnel, ITBP and other agencies involved in the challenging operation have started removing loose ends of pipes and wires.
Rescue team inside the Tapovan tunnel in Chamoli (SNS)
Search and rescue teams are struggling to make headway inside the tunnel of the Tapovan hydroelectric project in Uttarakhand’s Chamoli, where 30- 35 workers remain trapped in the wake of Sunday’s flash flood caused after a glacier burst in the upper reaches of the Himalayas.
After battling slush and debris, boulders are creating new problems for the rescue teams, making the situation complicated.
The 30-35 workers have been trapped in the tunnel since 7 February.
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In a move to ease progress inside the Tapovan tunnel, ITBP and other agencies involved in the challenging operation have started removing loose ends of pipes and wires.
Authorities said drones and remote sensing equipment were being used in the rescue operations. Drilling through the debris has become more difficult with the silt inside the tunnel drying up and getting harder, Deputy Inspector General (DIG) Nilesh Anand Bharne, Uttarakhand Police chief spokesperson, was quoted as saying.
Rescue teams have so far managed to progress 80 metres inside the tunnel and have to make their way through tonnes of debris for at least 100 metres more to reach those trapped inside, the DIG added.
The rescue operation has been continuing in the tunnel for the fourth successive day.
A team of scientists from Wadia Institute of Himalayan Geology (Dehradun) conducted an aerial survey of the glacier, which triggered a snow avalanche to cause a flash flood on 7 February. The Indian Air Force too deployed an Advanced Light Helicopter for conducting an aerial survey of Tapovan and the glacier.
So far 34 bodies have been recovered. Some 170 persons remain missing.
Nine bodies were identified while 25 others still remain unidentified.
The state police have set up a WhatsApp group for the affected families.
Photographs of the bodies recovered and other details are shared on the platform to identify the body recovered.
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