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As relief and rescue operations in the Uttarkashi tunnel collapse incident are underway, Union Minister and former Army chief General VK Singh took stock of the operation on Thursday and said that "we are trying our best."
"The rescue operation is underway; we have full hope. We are trying our best," VK Singh said after arriving at the Silkyara tunnel in Uttarkashi. An under-construction tunnel between Silkyara and Dandalgaon on the Brahmakhal-Yamunotri national highway collapsed in the early hours of November 12. According to the sources, after the rescue operation, the workers will be taken to Rishikesh AIIMS for treatment. "The installation work of the machines airlifted from Delhi has been done and the rescue operation work is underway," Anshu Manish Khulko, National Highways and Infrastructure Development Corporation Limited (NHIDCL) Tunnel Project Director, told ANI. Dharam Singh, father of one of the labourers trapped inside, said that his son is also trapped inside the tunnel, adding that he spoke to his son and gave him courage. "My 20-year-old son Vijay Kumar is trapped inside the tunnel. I spoke to my son for a little while and I gave him courage and assured him that everything would be fine and he would be brought out by this evening. Food and water are being provided to him in small quantities," Dharam Singh said. The officials of the National Highways and Infrastructure Development Corporation Limited are confident of completing the rescue operation successfully today. "We have the support of the administration... We will succeed in this (rescue process). The machine is 99.99 per cent installed. I want to inform everyone not to get misled... Everyone is fine; they don't need medical help. But still, the medical team is here..." NHIDCL PRO Girdharilaal said. Earlier on Wednesday, Uttarakhand Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami reviewed the ongoing relief and rescue operations in the tunnel under construction in Silkyara of Uttarkashi. A portion of the tunnel that is being constructed between Silkyara and Dandalgaon on the Brahmakhal-Yamunotri National Highway collapsed in the early hours of Sunday following a landslide, trapping 40 workers inside. (ANI)
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