Hope of rescue team reaching 8 people trapped in the tunnel soon, TBM machine is being cut with gas cutter

Rescue operation in Telangana to rescue 8 laborers who have been stranded in a tunnel for more than five days is intensifying. The operation is on a war footing with assistance from Army, Navy, NDRF, and SDRF. But no laborers have made contact as yet. The rescue team is currently cutting on the Tunnel Boring Machine (TBM) as well as on other materials. The team will move in the tunnel once cutting is complete on the machine.

Nagarkurnool Superintendent of Police Vaibhav Gaikwad said that the damaged part of the conveyor belt in the tunnel has been repaired. Through this, the debris will be taken out from the inside. When the officer was asked whether the gas cutter had started working, he said that some parts had been cut with the gas cutter at night itself. The cutting work started last night itself. The SP said that he could not answer whether the trapped people would be found today or not.

Telangana Minister Uttam Kumar Reddy said on Wednesday that the TBM installed inside will be removed by cutting it into pieces with a gas cutter. After this, teams of Army, Navy, Rat Miners, and NDRF will try to take out the 8 people trapped inside.

Meanwhile, news is coming that the workers engaged in tunnel construction have said that they will return home from work due to fear. A senior government official said that 800 people are working on the Srisailam Left Bank Canal project. Of these, 300 are local people. The rest have come from states like Jharkhand, Odisha and UP.

The official said that the workers were nervous after the media reports. They are planning to return. He said that the company has built residential camps for the workers. We have not received any report of a mass exodus of workers. Some people may want to go back.

A critical incident took place in the tunnel project in Telangana state's Nagarkurnool district on February 22. A 3-meter portion of the ceiling in a 14 km section of the tunnel crashed in a matter of moments. 50 laborers were at that spot. 42 laborers escaped from that spot. But 8 laborers got trapped.

Construction work on the project of Srisailam Left Bank Canal (SLBC) is contracted with Jaiprakash Associates Ltd. Jayprakash Gaur, Founder Chairman at Jaypee Group, made a statement regarding this incident that in difficult work, accidents are bound to take place. Gaur also said that rescue personnel are making all attempts to rescue those who are trapped in order that they can emerge.

Two of these eight are engineers and four are laborers who are employees of Jaiprakash Associates. Two are operators. The following have been confirmed to have been involved in the incident - Manoj Kumar (UP), Shri Nivas (UP), Sunny Singh (Jammu and Kashmir), Gurpreet Singh (Punjab), and Sandeep Sahu, Jegta Jais, Santosh Sahu, and Anuj Sahu from Jharkhand.