After the safe evacuation of 41 trapped workers from the Silkyara tunnel on November 28, Prime Minister Narendra Modi spoke to the rescued men over the phone. All 41 men, who were rescued from the collapsed tunnel after 17 days, have been brought to the Community Health Centre in Chinyalisaur for primary medical treatment.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi in his conversation with the workers said he was happy that all the workers had been evacuated safely.
“I have put my telephone on speaker so that the people sitting with me can also listen to you. First of all, I congratulate all of you and all your colleagues. You were able to come out in a happy state even after such a long wait, and it is a matter of great happiness for me. I can’t even describe it in words.”
उत्तरकाशी में हमारे श्रमिक भाइयों के रेस्क्यू ऑपरेशन की सफलता हर किसी को भावुक कर देने वाली है।
टनल में जो साथी फंसे हुए थे, उनसे मैं कहना चाहता हूं कि आपका साहस और धैर्य हर किसी को प्रेरित कर रहा है। मैं आप सभी की कुशलता और उत्तम स्वास्थ्य की कामना करता हूं।
यह अत्यंत…
— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) November 28, 2023
“It was Kedarnath Baba’s and Badrinath Ji’s grace; you are all well. You also showed great courage, and you encouraged each other. This is the biggest thing because, even while travelling together in a rail compartment sometimes difference occur. Despite that, you remained so patient. I used to keep taking in information continuously. I was also in constant touch with the Chief Minister. When my officers would update me on the work, I used to be concerned as the rescue was taking time. It is due to the prayers of your families and friends that you have been able to win over this crisis” PM Modi added.
#WATCH | Prime Minister Narendra Modi's telephonic conversation with the workers who were successfully rescued from Uttarakhand's Silkyara tunnel after 17 days pic.twitter.com/G1q26t5Ke8
— ANI (@ANI) November 29, 2023
One of the workers told the Prime Minister that they were never apprehensive or scared because all of them were together all the time.
“We never felt scared or demotivated as all 41 of us were together. We would eat out dinner together and then I would tell the workers let’s all walk together. The place where we were trapped was about 2.5 kilometres so we would walk along that and also do yoga. Since we didn’t have any work this was important for us. I want to thank the Government of Uttrakhand who supported us during these days. The Chief Minister would contact us and we are grateful to him as well. And General VK Singh was always there outside the tunnel”.
The workers name include Viswajit Kumar, Subodh Kumar, Rajendra Bedia, Sukram, Tinku Sardar, Gunodhar, Sameer, Ravindra, Ranjeet, Mahadev, Bhukttu Murmu, Jamra Oraon, Vijay Horo, Ganapati – all from Jharkhand, Gabbar Singh Negi, and Pushkar – both from Uttarakhand, Saba Ahmed, Sonu Sah, Virendra Kiskoo, and Sushil Kumar – all from Bihar, Manir Talukdar, Sevik Pakhera, and Jaydev Parmanik – all from West Bengal, Akhilesh Kumar, Ankit, Ram Milan, Satya Dev, Santosh, Jai Prakash, Ram Sundar, and Manjit – all from Uttar Pradesh, Tapan Mandal, Bhagwan Batra, Viseshar Naik, Raju Naik, and Dhiren – all from Odisha, Sanjay and Ram Prasad from Assam, and Vishal from Himachal Pradesh.
A medical check-up of 41 workers who were successfully rescued from the Silkyara Tunnel located on Uttarkashi-Yamnotri Road is going on at Chiniyalisaur Community Health Centre.
According to government sources, all the workers admitted to the health centre are being given food as per the doctors’ advice.
#WATCH | Medical checkup of 41 workers who were successfully rescued from Silkyara Tunnel is underway at Chinyalisaur Community Health Centre pic.twitter.com/hMkaSqu1eQ
— ANI (@ANI) November 29, 2023
One of the rescued labourers, Vishwajeet Kumar Verma from Jharkhand who operates a compressor machine said that he had full faith that he would be rescued and would see the outside world again.
“I am very happy and safe. All the other trapped labourers are also safe. Now, we are in the hospital. The debris had fallen at the beginning of the tunnel and I was on the other side. The road of about two and a half kilometers was empty. We used to roam around inside the tunnel to spend our time. There was a little fear in the beginning, but as we got food, water and talked to our families, our morale kept going higher and higher. We had full faith that very soon we would see the outside world,” Vishwajeet said.
#WATCH | First exclusive byte of rescued worker, Vishwajeet Kumar Verma, who narrates his 17-day ordeal of being trapped in the Silkyara tunnel
"When the debris fell, we knew that we were stuck. For the first 10-15 hours we faced difficulty. But later, a pipe was put in to… pic.twitter.com/65X4afMVvB
— ANI (@ANI) November 29, 2023
A colleague of Vishwajeet, Subodh Kumar Verma said that the workers inside the tunnel were ‘determined’ to be evacuated.
“I am a resident of Jharkhand and run a concrete pump inside the tunnel. An atmosphere of fear was created among the labourers after a part of the tunnel suddenly collapsed. 18-24 hours passed in the shadow of fear and after that, when we started getting food and drink, we got some relief. The administration had also arranged for oxygen. We had full faith that the administration would take us out,” he said.
Subodh Verma further said that he was eagerly waiting to meet his family. “I am in touch with my family on the phone continuously,” Subodh said.
#WATCH | Subodh Kumar Verma, a worker rescued from the Silkyara tunnel, thanks the Central and State governments for their efforts to bring out all 41 men safely
"The first 24 hours were tough but after that food was provided to us through a pipe. I am absolutely fine and in… pic.twitter.com/ocfBxF2HZl
— ANI (@ANI) November 29, 2023
Meanwhile, after 17 days of tense anticipation, relief and happiness enveloped the faces of the family members of 41 trapped workers upon receiving news of their successful rescue from the Silkyara tunnel in Uttarakhand’s Uttarkashi on November 28 evening.
The emotional moment unfolded as the culmination of exhaustive rescue efforts that captured the nation’s attention. The families, enduring prolonged desperation, celebrated the rescue and wholeheartedly thanked the government for bringing their loved ones back.
They marked the occasion by bursting crackers and distributing sweets. Some family members engaged in video conferencing with the workers to ensure their well-being. Many relatives, who had reached the site a couple of days after the incident and had been camping there since were finally reunited with their loved ones.
#WATCH | Ghatshila, East Singhbhum, Jharkhand: Sweets distributed to the family members of a worker, Tinku Sardar rescued yesterday from the Silkyara tunnel, 17 days after the incident took place pic.twitter.com/PqFLwn5hp6
— ANI (@ANI) November 29, 2023
Visuals also showed celebrations in Uttar Pradesh’s Lakhimpur Kheri at the residence of Manjit, another worker who was trapped. Manjit’s father said, “I am very happy that my son has been safely rescued. I thank the Government of India for safely rescuing all the people trapped inside the tunnel.”
#WATCH | Lakhimpur Kheri, Uttar Pradesh: Manjit,'s father said, "I am very happy that my son has been safely rescued. I thank the Government of India for safely rescuing all the people trapped inside the tunnel…" (28.11) https://t.co/fZz0VPBoIf pic.twitter.com/7DBxE7GBSb
— ANI (@ANI) November 29, 2023
Similar scenes surfaced in Odisha’s Nabarangpur, where family members of Bhagban Batra celebrated their joyous moment by bursting crackers and distributing sweets after his successful rescue from the tunnel.
The mother of rescued worker Dhiren Naik, from Odisha Mayurbhanj, thanked the Government of India for rescuing the workers from the tunnel. Family members of another worker, Ram Prasad Narzary, looked very happy, and Narzary’s wife said, “I am very happy… I thank the Government of India.”
#WATCH | Mayurbhanj, Odisha: Mother of Dhiren Naik, one of the workers who was rescued from the Uttarkashi tunnel, thanked the Government of India for rescuing the workers from the tunnel. (28.11) pic.twitter.com/MkY6ObEuBo
— ANI (@ANI) November 29, 2023
Narzary’s father said, “I want to thank the Government of India and the Assam Government for safely rescuing all the people trapped inside the tunnel… I am relieved after hearing that the rescued have been taken to the hospital.”
#WATCH | Kokrajhar, Assam: Ram Prsad Narzary's father said, "I want to thank the Government of India and Assam government for safely rescuing all the people trapped inside the tunnel… I am relieved after listening that the rescued have been taken to the hospital…" (28.11) pic.twitter.com/tFo9PCdgFw
— ANI (@ANI) November 28, 2023
Family members of a worker named Vishal from Himachal Pradesh, the only worker from the state, also shared her happiness. Urmila, the mother of Vishal, thanked the governments of Uttarakhand and Himachal Pradesh. “I am very happy with the governments of Uttarakhand and Himachal Pradesh; I thank them from the bottom of my heart,” she said.
Earlier, after the successful rescue of 41 workers from the Silkyara tunnel on November 28 evening, Dr Pravin Kumar, Health Director of Garhwal Division, in charge of the rescue operation, highlighted that constant communication with the trapped workers helped in maintaining their mental health stability.
When asked about the health challenges workers faced while they were trapped, Dr. Pravin Kumar said, “The workers were not diagnosed with any major ailments. Some of the workers faced difficulty passing urine and allergies, and we treated them accordingly. Water, juice, and food were constantly provided to the workers.”
(with inputs from ANI)
