Telangana tunnel collapse: Rescue ops continue as TBM parts being cut to reach trapped workers
Nagarkurnool (Telangana) (PTI): Rescue teams engaged in extricating the eight trapped workers under a partially collapsed tunnel of the SLBC here are cutting down a Tunnel Boring Machine (TBM) to make way to reach the stranded persons, officials said on Saturday
The rescue efforts are on in full swing, a week after the engineers and labourers were trapped under the collapsed roof of the Srisailam Left Bank Canal (SLBC) tunnel.
Teams comprising personnel from NDRF, Army, state-run miner Singareni Collieries, rat miners and other agencies are working continuously, Nagarkurnool Superintendent of Police Vaibhav Gaikwad said.
"The rescue operation is going on... (Saturday) morning a team went inside (the tunnel)... The process of dewatering, removing debris is also going on simultaneously", the SP told PTI.
The parts of TBM are also being cut to clear the path ahead, he added.
"Whatever obstacles are coming in between (to reach the spot where they can search for trapped persons), we have to remove them."
According to an official, the damaged part of the conveyor belt in the tunnel was expected to be repaired on Saturday.
Meanwhile, scientists from the National Geophysical Research Institute (NGRI) used Ground Penetrating Radar (GPR) and detected some "anomalies" inside the tunnel.
However, it is unclear what these anomalies represent, given the challenging conditions inside the tunnel, including mud and saturated water bodies, official sources said.
Rescue personnel need to examine these "anomalies" further to identify them, they added.
Eight persons, working on the SLBC tunnel project, were trapped after a portion of the tunnel collapsed on February 22.
A team of over 500 skilled personnel from the Army, Navy, Singareni Collieries and other agencies were involved in the rescue ops over the past few days.
The trapped persons have been identified as Manoj Kumar (UP), Sri Niwas (UP), Sunny Singh (J&K), Gurpreet Singh (Punjab) and Sandeep Sahu, Jegta Xess, Santosh Sahu and Anuj Sahu, all from Jharkhand.
Of the eight, two are engineers, two are operators and the remaining four are labourers from Jharkhand.
The two engineers and four labourers are working for Jaiprakash Associates, the contracting firm of SLBC tunnel project.
State Irrigation Minister N Uttam Kumar Reddy, Excise Minister Jupally Krishna Rao, Chief Secretary Santhi Kumari left for the accident site from here, sources said.
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Sujit Nair raises concerns over speculation of DMK-AIADMK understanding to block TVK
Chennai: Journalist and political commentator Sujit Nair has expressed concern over speculation that the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam and the All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam could explore a post-poll understanding to prevent Vijay-led Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam from forming the government in Tamil Nadu.
In a social media post, Sujit Nair said the election verdict in Tamil Nadu reflected a clear public demand for political change and argued that the mandate should be respected irrespective of political preferences.
Referring to reports and political discussions surrounding a possible understanding between the DMK and AIADMK, he said he hoped such developments remained only speculative conversations and did not turn into reality.
Nair stated that if such an alliance were to take shape, it would raise serious questions about ideological politics in the country. He said TVK had emerged through a democratic electoral process and that the legitimacy to govern in a parliamentary democracy comes from the people’s verdict.
According to him, attempts to prevent an electoral winner from forming the government through unexpected political arrangements may be constitutionally valid, but many people could view them as politically opportunistic.
He further said that such a move could particularly affect the political image of the DMK, which has historically projected itself around ideology, social justice and opposition politics. Nair said that in ideological terms, the DMK appeared closer to TVK than to the AIADMK, and joining hands with its long-time political rival only to remain in power could weaken its broader political narrative.
He added that the same questions would apply to the AIADMK as well, as the party had spent decades positioning itself against the DMK and such an arrangement could create discomfort among its cadre and supporters.
Drawing a comparison with Maharashtra politics in 2019, Nair said he had expressed similar views when the Shiv Sena formed an alliance with the Indian National Congress and the Nationalist Congress Party after the Assembly elections.
He said post-poll alliances between long-standing political rivals often create a public perception that ideology and electoral mandates become secondary when political power equations come into play.
Nair also said such developments increase public cynicism towards politics and reinforce the belief among voters that ideology is often sidelined after elections.
He maintained that the Tamil Nadu verdict was emphatic and said respecting both the spirit and substance of the mandate was important for the credibility of democratic politics.
