The Uttarakhand government on Thursday honoured 12 rat miners who played a crucial role in saving lives of 41 workers who got trapped inside the collapsed Silkyara-Barkot tunnel for 17 days.
Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami handed out Rs 50,000 cheques to each of them.
Twelve rat miners were honoured by the state, 22 days after the successful Silkyara-Barkot tunnel rescue operation in Uttarkashi on November 29. The rat miners dug up the last leg of nearly 60 metres of escape passage manually in less than two days as heavy auger machines failed to drill through the boulders and iron blockades under the tunnel debris hindering the rescue operation.
Speaking to the rat miners at his official residence here, Dhami said,”Rat miners not only dug up the escape passage but they also manually cleared cutting the pipes in the tunnel under very difficult circumstances without caring for their lives. They made huge contribution in making the collapsed Silkyara tunnel rescue operation a mega success. People of Uttarakhand and state government express their gratitude to them.”
Dhami expressed that the nation feels indebted to the rat miners. He added “All rat miners deserve compliment from the countrymen and blessings for the dedication and hard work with which they ensured success of world’s largest rescue operation with the contributions of huge manpower and other agencies deployed at the collapsed tunnel site to save 41 workers’ lives.”
Rat miners from Delhi and other parts of India were called by the rescuers in the final phase of 17-day operation as they failed to complete the last 12 meters digging of the escape passage with world class auger machines deployed there.
Dhami honoured the rat miners presenting a shawl and cheque of Rs 50,000 to each of them.
Rat miners had become national celebrities after their work became known to the world. They were being consistently honoured from different platforms in television shows and other events.