“GETTING EVEN MORE COMPLEX”
Rescue teams have stretchers fitted with wheels ready to pull the exhausted men through 57m of pipe if it can be driven through the final section of rubble blocking their escape.
Efforts have been painfully slow, complicated by falling debris as well as repeated breakdowns of crucial heavy drilling machines, with the Air Force having to airlift new kit.
Since Wednesday, officials have said repeatedly they were optimistic of a breakthrough within hours, but a government statement warned the rescue was “subject to change due to technical glitches, the challenging Himalayan terrain, and unforeseen emergencies”.
Arnold Dix, president of the International Tunnelling and Underground Space Association, who is advising the rescue on site, said he remained optimistic as there were “many ways” to reach the men.
“I am confident that the 41 men are coming home,” he said.
Work has also begun from the far side of the road tunnel, a much longer third route estimated to be around 480m.
Syed Ata Hasnain, a senior rescue official and retired general, said their efforts were “exactly like war”.
“We have to have some patience, we need to understand that a very difficult operation is going on,” he told reporters.
“I feel everyone has their attention on this as to when this operation will be over, but you need to see that this operation is getting even more complex,” he added.
“We have never given you the timeline. I have experienced that when you do something with mountains, you cannot predict anything. This situation is exactly like war.”
The Silkyara tunnel is part of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s infrastructure project aimed at cutting travel times between some of the most popular Hindu temples in the country.
The 4.5km passage is meant to connect Uttarkashi and Yamunotri, two of the holiest sites.