Uttarakhand tunnel rescue: Vertical drilling done up to 31 metres, says BRO's ex-DG at Silkyara site
Uttarkashi (PTI): Vertical drilling from above the Silkyara-Barkot tunnel has been done up to 31 metres, former DG of Border Roads Organisation Harpal Singh said on Monday at the site of the rescue operation.
A total of 86 metres have to be drilled vertically to prepare an escape passage for the 41 workers trapped for the last 15 days. Pipes of 1.2 metres in diameter have to be laid vertically through the top of the tunnel by this method adopted as a second option.
Preparations are also underway to start horizontal drilling inside the main tunnel manually, he said. Rescuers need to manually dig 10 to 12 metres through the rubble after the auger machine broke down.
"Frames of 800 mm diameter pipes have been prepared. We will move ahead by half a metre to one metre gradually. If all goes well and no obstacles are encountered a 10-metre stretch can be covered in 24-36 hours," he said.
The auger drill -- a corkscrew-like device with a rotary blade at the front end -- that was drilling into the debris got stuck Friday evening, forcing officials to give up on the 25-tonne machine.
Parts of the auger were left to be removed from an 8.15-metre area on Sunday night. Extracting the shaft and fins of the machine from the rubble completely was necessary to pave the way for manual drilling and pushing of pipes which is in the final stretch with around 12 metres more to go. All parts of the machine have now been removed.
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BJP will form govt in Bengal with thumping majority: Nabin
Mirzapur (UP) (PTI): BJP president Nitin Nabin on Wednesday voiced confidence that his party will form the government in West Bengal with a "thumping majority".
Polling is underway for 142 constituencies in the second and final phase of the West Bengal assembly elections, covering key districts, including Kolkata, Howrah and North and South 24 Parganas.
The high-stakes contest is being seen as decisive for the ruling TMC's bid for a fourth consecutive term and the BJP's push to form its first government in the state. The first phase held on April 23 recorded a high voter turnout of over 93 per cent, reflecting intense electoral engagement.
Speaking to reporters in Mirzapur, Nabin said, "The BJP will form the government in Bengal. We are winning the elections with a massive majority."
Earlier in the day, the BJP chief visited the Vindhyavasini temple and offered prayers. The rituals were conducted by his priest Acharya Agastya Kumar Dwivedi.
On his first visit to the district after assuming office, Nabin was welcomed by party workers at several places. At the temple, he was received by city MLA Ratnakar Mishra and District Magistrate Pawan Kumar Gangwar, who felicitated him with a traditional 'angvastram'.
After offering prayers for about 10 minutes amid Vedic chants, Nabin held a meeting at a hotel with local MLAs, including Mishra, Majhwan MLA Suchismita Maurya and Madihan MLA Ramashankar Patel.
Patel said Nabin emphasised strengthening the organisation and asked public representatives to focus on serving people in their respective constituencies.
Several party leaders, including district president Lal Bahadur Saroj, district vice-president Gaurav Umar, municipal chairperson Shyam Sundar Kesari, women workers and senior officials, were present on the occasion.
Elaborate security arrangements were put in place by the district administration for the visit, with multiple officers of circle officer rank deployed, officials said.
