Uttarkashi: Rescuers Tuesday released the first video of the workers trapped inside the Silkyara tunnel here for 10 days.
The visuals were captured using an endoscopic camera sent in through the alternative 6-inch pipeline, which was pushed in through the rubble of the collapsed tunnel Monday.
The camera was sent in after it came from Delhi late Monday evening.
In the video, the workers, wearing yellow and white helmets, are seen receiving food items sent to them through the pipeline and talking to each other.
This comes as a big relief to the families of these workers.
सिलक्यारा, उत्तरकाशी में निर्माणाधीन सुरंग के अंदर फँसे श्रमिकों से पहली बार एंडोस्कोपिक फ्लेक्सी कैमरे के माध्यम से बातचीत कर उनका कुशलक्षेम पूछा गया। सभी श्रमिक बंधु पूरी तरह सुरक्षित हैं। pic.twitter.com/vcr28EHx8g
— Pushkar Singh Dhami (@pushkardhami) November 21, 2023
National Highways and Infrastructure Development Corporation Limited (NHIDCL) Director Anshu Manish Khalkho had earlier said that cameras would be inserted through the pipeline to see how the workers were doing.
Rescue operations are being carried out on a war footing since portions of the tunnel collapsed following a landslide early November 12, leaving 41 workers trapped behind a huge mound of debris.
Till Monday, a four-inch existing tube was being used to supply oxygen and items like dry fruits and medicines into the section of the tunnel beyond the rubble of the collapsed portion.
The six-inch pipeline will allow rescuers to send in larger quantities of food.
According to officials, food items like porridge, khichdi, sliced apples, and bananas can be sent in through the new pipeline. Also, mobile phones and chargers could be sent to the workers.
The Silkyara tunnel, about 30 km from the district headquarters of Uttarkashi and a seven-hour drive from the Uttarakhand capital Dehradun, is part of the ambitious Char Dham all-weather road project of the central government.