Workers being kept under observation, tunnel work to start after safety audit

UTTARKASHI, Nov 29: The 41 workers rescued from the Silkyara tunnel here were airlifted to AIIMS-Rishikesh where they underwent a health check-up on Wednesday, while many of them shared how they overcame initial anxiety, stood by each other and never gave up hope.
As the 17-day ordeal brought the project into the spotlight, a senior road ministry official said work on the tunnel, which is part of the central government’s strategic 900-km ‘Char Dham Yatra All Weather Road’, will continue after the necessary safety audit and repair of the broken structure.
The workers were kept under medical observation at a hospital in Chinyalisaur after their evacuation on Tuesday night. Uttarakhand Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami met them and handed over a cheque of Rs 1 lakh to each of them.
The chief minister also announced a Rs 50,000 reward for each of the rat-hole mining experts who took part in the rescue operation.
The workers were brought to AIIMS-Rishikesh by a Chinook helicopter this afternoon.
An official at AIIMS-Rishikesh said they were undergoing a detailed examination of health parameters. Their mental health will also be checked, he said adding they were being kept under observation.
In a telephonic conversation with Prime Minister Narendra Modi late Tuesday night, the workers said they kept their spirits up while waiting to be rescued by taking morning walks and practising yoga inside the tunnel.
The workers hailed Prime Minister Modi, Chief Minister Dhami and rescue teams for their efforts, with one of them saying they had nothing to worry about as the government had saved Indians who were abroad and in their case they were within the country.“The safety audit of the Silkyara tunnel will be conducted. Meanwhile, efforts will be made to repair and rectify the broken structure.“The necessary precautions will be taken and the 4.5 km long tunnel project will continue,” a senior official of the road ministry who was part of the rescue team said. (PTI)