Uttarakhand government on Tuesday ordered a probe into the collapse of a tunnel between Silkyara and Dandalgaon on the Brahmakhal-Yamunotri National Highway even as the relief and rescue operations to rescue the trapped workers continued.
The tunnel caved in on Sunday following a landslide. The 30-metre collapsed section is 270 metres from the mouth of the tunnel from the Silkyara side, the state emergency operation centre said.
According to officials, Chief Minister Pushkar Dhami has set up a technical committee headed by Uttarakhand Landslide Mitigation and Management Center (ULMMC) director to probe the cause of the collapse of the tunnel.
“This committee will include experts from Wadia Institute of Himalayan Geology, Indian Institute of Technology Roorkee, Central Building Research Institute Roorkee and Geological Survey of India (GSI),” a senior official said.
Meanwhile, efforts were made Tuesday morning to make an ‘escape passage’ to reach out to the 40 trapped labourers. Heavy machines, including horizontal and vertical drilling machines and shotcrete machines, were brought in to create escape passage removing the debris from the way.
Special launch pads were created for these machines to install 900 mm diameter MS steel pipes across the debris. However, officials rue since the debris is loose, it is causing difficulties in drilling.
State disaster management department secretary Ranjit Sinha said the landslide-hit area is made up of soft rocks.
Uttarkashi District Magistrate Abhishek Ruhela said horizontal drilling will be taken up soon to create escape passage for the trapped workers.
Oxygen and food supplies are being provided to the workers through a compressor inside the tunnel. SDRF rescue team is also trying