Nagarkurnool (Telangana) [India], March 1 : Telangana Chief Secretary Shanti Kumari, along with Ministers Uttam Kumar Reddy and Jupalli Krishna Rao, arrived at the Srisailam Left Bank Canal (SLBC) tunnel and held a review meeting with rescue officials regarding the ongoing rescue operation.
The rescue operation is focused on eight workers trapped inside the tunnel after its roof collapsed on February 22.
Ambulances have been stationed at the site, and Army medical teams are fully equipped with medical supplies to assist with the operation. However, the presence of water and slush is hindering the progress of rescue teams.
Earlier today, efforts were made to clear the sludge from the tunnel to facilitate further rescue work.
Meanwhile, relatives and family members of the trapped workers remain apprehensive about their condition as they await the safe recovery of their loved ones.
Relatives of Gurpreet Singh, one of the trapped workers, claimed that they had no updates from the SLBC tunnel rescue operations. One relative said he had urged officials that he be granted permission to enter the tunnel, but his request was denied.
On Friday, an official told ANI that a joint effort involving mining experts from Singareni, the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF), the State Disaster Response Force (SDRF), the Indian Army, and other agencies is in progress.
An officer from the rescue team on Friday said, "Initially, we deployed 20 people and yesterday and today we are going to deploy 200 personnel... All our rescue team personnel from Singareni are experienced in working underground and in emergency situations. So, they are experts in rock cutting."
Meanwhile, Nagarkurnool SP Gaikwad Vaibhav Raghunath said, "All Singareni teams, NDRF team, SDRF team, Army and company officials are here. Sludge has been brought out since yesterday. Hopefully, we will get good results soon. The combined teams are working here. It is a combined operation."
According to Congress MLA Dr. Chikkudu Vamshi, relief operations are continuing on the seventh day since the incident. He highlighted that 12 departments are collaborating to expedite the process, and experienced personnel from Singareni mines are playing a crucial role.