Despite multiple setbacks, officials were hopeful of a breakthrough in their operation to rescue the 41 workers trapped in Silkyara tunnel in Uttarkashi, as manual horizontal drilling commenced on Monday. Madras Sappers, an engineering group of the Corps of Engineers of the Indian Army, are overseeing the digging operation which employs “rat mining” technique to remove debris. Civilians experienced in rat-hole mining are assisting the Sappers in the process.
Simultaneously, vertical drilling too was carried out, and reached a depth of 36 metres till 7 p.m. Vertically, rescuers need to drill through 86 metres of mountain while manual horizontal drilling must be undertaken for a further 10-12 metres. They covered 0.9 metres on Monday.
Also read: Uttarkashi tunnel collapse Live Updates on November 27, 2023
