Uttarakhand tunnel collapse: Drilling completed up to 45 metres, 12 more metres to go
Uttarkashi, Nov 22: Inching closer to their goal, rescuers have inserted wide pipes up to 45 metres through the rubble and will have to drill another around 12 metres to reach the 41 workers trapped inside the collapsed tunnel in Silkyara for 10 days, officials said Wednesday afternoon.
The authorities have also made elaborate healthcare arrangements for the workers as and when they crawl out through the pipe.
Speaking to reporters at the site around 4.30 pm, former advisor to the prime minister's office Bhaskar Khulbe said, "We are very happy to inform you that (drilling of) a length of six metres has been achieved over the past one hour. Hopefully the next two-three hours will be comfortable in terms of assembling for the next push and attaining what all of us are waiting for. I hope that when we assemble again at 8 pm we have some similar good news to share with you."
He has been regularly briefing the media on the rescue efforts.
NHIDCL MD Mahmood Ahmed and Khulbe had told reporters earlier in the day that 39 metres had been drilled through the rubble to lay three 800-mm diametre pipes.
Rescuers have to drill up to around 57 metres in total to reach the trapped workers who have been stranded on the other side of the rubble since November 12.
On the healthcare arrangements, officials said a team of 15 doctors have been deployed. An eight-bed hospital has been prepared in the control room.
Several ambulances and a helicopter have been kept on standby, they said.
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Woman duped of Rs 25 lakh in fake Canada visa scam; 1 held
Shimla (PTI): A woman has been arrested from Punjab for allegedly duping another woman of Rs 25 lakhs by promising her to arrange a visa for Canada, police said on Monday.
The accused has been identified as Manju Kumari, a resident of Punjab.
Senior Superintendent of Police SSP Shimla Gaurav Singh said that Manju had contacted the woman several months ago and had promised her to arrange a visa for Canada.
"After this, she asked for money for the same from the victim, which she transferred to her on multiple occasions. However, as time went by, Manju started to make various excuses and ignored her calls," the SSP said.
Upon suspecting being defrauded, the victim's brother registered a complaint, and a case was registered under sections 318 (4) (cheating), 61(2) (criminal conspiracy) and 352 (2) (intentional insults designed to provoke a breach of peace) of Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), the SSP said.
"Police teams were sent to Haryana and Punjab, but she kept evading arrest as she kept changing her locations as well as her mobile numbers. However, the police teams successfully arrested her on Sunday from a flat located in Kharar in Punjab," he said.
Further investigation into the matter is underway, and the defrauded money is also being recovered, he added.
