Preparations have been underway at Silkyara tunnel rescue site as rescuers inch closer to the 41 trapped labourers with just five metres left to achieve a breakthrough in digging through the rubble. As per the latest information, a pipe has been inserted up to 55.3 metres while the breakthrough mark stands at 57 metres.
Meanwhile, ambulances have been lined up outside the tunnel to rush the trapped workers to a hospital for immediate medical care following their rescue.
Latest visuals shared by news agency ANI showed several ambulances going inside the tunnel.
A separate ward has been set up for the workers at the community health centre in Chinyalisaur, about 30 km from Silkyara, equipped with 41 oxygen-supported beds.
To ensure smooth movement of the ambulances, the road outside the tunnel was repaired and a fresh layer of soil was being laid after it became uneven due to regular movement of heavy vehicles over the past fortnight.
Senior police officers breifed the security personnel outside the tunnel to swing into action the moment workers start coming out of the escape passage being prepared for them.
On Tuesday, Uttarakhand Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami said that pipes have been inserted up to 52 metres through the rubble at Silkyara tunnel as efforts to rescue the 41 trapped workers entered 17th day.
The breakthrough point is 57 metres, he told reporters in Silkyara.
The rat-hole mining experts arrived at the tunnel site on Monday and started the process of manual digging
while 800-mm diameter pipes were being pushed through the rubble by an auger machine.
"Pipe has gone in up to 52 metres. Earlier, it was at 51 metres. It was pushed one metre further in my presence. It will be pushed two metres more to 54 metres after which one more pipe will be laid," Dhami said.