Tag Archives: miracle

The Uttarkashi Miracle – 41 Lives at the End of the Tunnel

Posted on by
2
The Uttarkashi Rescue (PTI)

In the early hours of the 12th of November 2023, the under-construction Silkyara tunnel in the Uttarkashi region of Uttarakhand collapsed. For the next 17 days, the nation was transfixed by the humongous rescue efforts to bring out the 41 trapped workers alive and safe. Non-stop coverage on TV channels and on social media brought this intense story into every home. What made the entire experience so riveting and inspiring was the human heart-beat which throbbed right through. Plus the back-stories of the heroes who put their own lives at risk, and the experts and professionals who worked day and night at the site without rest or sleep.

Rat-hole mining was banned by the National Green Tribunal in India in 2014. It was the process of digging employed in Meghalaya and North East India to extract coal. It was a procedure that involved digging manually wherein the workers had to crawl and burrow in and out of a narrow passage or tunnel. The ban was due to the very high-risk working conditions and for causing damage to the environment. The technical and rescue teams at the disaster site were out of their depth as the state-of-the-art Auger horizontal dry drilling machine broke down more than 10 meters short of the 60-odd meter passage to the trapped workmen. The list of the heroic rat miners who cleared the final stretch to reach the workers reads as Munna Qureshi, Devendra, Monu Kumar, Feroze Qureshi, Wakeel Hasan, Nasir Khan, Rashid Ansari, Irshan Ansari, Ankur, Surya Mohan… Our heroes worked with Companies involved in contractual jobs with the Public Works Department and Municipal Corporations primarily in Delhi. They cleaned nallahs before monsoons, kept the sewer lines operational, and dug narrow tunnels and underground ditches for utility pipelines. Earning Rs 300/ to Rs 600/ per day for 12-hour shifts. Surya Mohan had this to say to a news channel, “We can squeeze ourselves and stay in that position longer than any normal and flexible person. We can work in holes with foul smells for 2-3 hours at a stretch. We can operate in conditions where oxygen levels are low. This is not an expertise but skills gained through practice since childhood.” Devendra Kumar, who was the first to reach the trapped workers and embrace them elaborates, “We can squat on our haunches and rest our body weight on our toes for 3 hours at a stretch. We can work like this in as little space as 2 feet and that is what we did as we sat in the pipe at Silkyara tunnel to clear the blocked portion. We held the drill machine right in front of us vertical to our chest with the heavier part where the motor is fitted touching the ride side of our chest.” Leaving the final word to Feroze Qureshi, “We expect nothing. We were so happy to save and help 41 fellow workers.” Real Heroes!!! Whilst hopefully some worthy financial rewards and honors will come their way it is refreshing to see that these saviors are being feted and applauded on prime TV shows like ‘Indian Idol.’

‘Rat miners surprised the world with their unique capability to bore around 13 meters and to fix and weld steel pipes- all this after cutting and extracting broken Auger parts.’ Lt General (Retd) Syed Ata Hasnain cited in his articles later. Local media and social influencers hailed it as a win for Indian Jugaad.

In an interview with the Free Press Journal, tunnel foreman Gabbar Singh Negi talked about how the 41 workers survived the 17 harrowing days without sinking into depression or hopelessness. Many workers later spoke about how he had kept them calm by practicing yoga and meditation and leading them on a morning walk of the 2000-meter stretch available. Negi, a local of Uttarakhand, rose to be a true leader for his team from Bihar, Odisha, West Bengal, Uttar Pradesh, Jharkhand, Assam, and Himachal Pradesh by motivating them to regroup as a unit for those long nerve-wracking days.

Australian Professor Arnold Dix became a national hero after all the workers were rescued unscathed. A geologist, engineer, and lawyer, he answered the SOS from the Indian Government and reached the site on the 20th of November. He inspected the collapsed tunnel, co-ordinated with all the Agencies on the ground, and suggested technical solutions to overcome challenges through the rubble. He was always on the forefront whether advising the rat mining operations or the final rescue mission by the NDRF (National Disaster Response Force). In a conversation with Business Today he talked about, “How keeping them warm and connected, providing proper food, and having all the emergency services around helped a great deal.” Prof Dix was also seen praying for the safe evacuation of the 41 workers and even performing Pooja at a small temple in the vicinity. He remains the most loved Aussie in India after the Australian cricket team broke a billion hearts by beating India in the WC ODI cricket final on the 19th of November.

Lt General Syed Ata Hasnain (Retd) as a Member of the NDMA (National Disaster Management Agency) stands out as another hero in this multi-agency, multi-approach, multi-options rescue mission. In his articles in the Indian Express and First Post, he lauds the Government of India’s dictum that “Every life is precious including those engaged in the rescue efforts. On a virtual war footing, no expense or effort was spared to save all the 41 lives at stake. A unique and outstanding example of how teamwork facilitated from the highest to the lowest levels. Bureaucratic hurdles were thrown aside. Perfect coordination between the Centre, the Uttarakhand Government, and other States left nothing to chance.”

The Uttarakhand State Disaster Management Authority (SDMA) and State Disaster Response Force (SDRF) reached the disaster location immediately and quickly estimated that the end-to-end distance of debris to reach the workers at approx. 58-60 meters. The NDRF quickly deployed 2 teams to the tunnel site. They conducted contingency drills to take out the workers in improvised stretchers with wheels using ropes. An 80-metre long, 900 mm wide steel pipe was used for the mock drill. Alongside, the Madras Sappers (Army Engineers) prepared for a side drift technology option and did all the fabrications on the spot.

In the initial days, a 4-inch compressed pipeline became the lifeline for the trapped workmen. Survival rations like almonds, dry fruits, chickpeas, and medicines were pushed through by compressed air. Around the 8th day, a 6-inch pipeline facilitated the supply of water, oxygen, cooked food, fruits, and communication lines. The conditions of entrapment revealed that the power cables had not snapped and there was some light inside the tunnel. BSNL set up a landline facility and with walkie-talkies, the workers could speak with their close family and friends. And perhaps for the first time in India, psycho-social advice was given to each worker in their own language by qualified professionals who were flown to the site. After the rescue many workers expressed their heartfelt thanks to the Chief Minister of Uttarakhand Shri Pushkar Singh Dhami, General VK Singh (Retd) Minister of State of Road Transport and Highways, and the Principal Secretary of the PMO (Prime Minister’s office) for their concern and for regularly boosting up their morale.

The scale of the operation can be gauged by the fact that the Indian Government reached out to Norway’s Norwegian Geotechnical Institute (NGI) and the Thailand cave rescue team. Micro-tunneling expert Mr Chris Cooper, already a consultant on the Rishikesh –Karnaprayag rail project was specially flown in on the 18th of November. A nationwide hunt for large drilling equipment led to Odisha, MP, and Gujarat. Gigantic machines were dismantled and loaded onto IAF C-17 transport aircraft, flat-bed railway rolling stocks, and huge trucks. Green corridors were provided for surface transport. State authorities in Odisha, Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat, Rajasthan, and Uttar Pradesh effectively coordinated with the National Disaster Management Agency ( NDMA) and the nodal IAS officer of the Uttarakhand Government. The huge Auger machine was air-lifted from Delhi using two Hercules 130 planes, brought to the spot in 3 parts, and assembled without any delay at all.

A ward with 41 oxygen-supported beds was ready at the Chinyalisaur Community Health Centre -30 km from the collapsed tunnel.  Medical personnel and psychiatrists and a fleet of ambulances were on the alert. Arrangements had been made to airlift workers to advanced hospitals if required.

However, this is also a wake-up call. A 2021 research project by the Wadia Institute of Himalayan Geology revealed that half of Uttarakhand including Uttarkashi fell into the high to very high landslide-prone zone. There is talk that a landslide triggered the collapse. Another cause may be water seepage through loose patches of rock. The NHAI (National Highway Authority of India) preliminary report refers to geological faults and fractures – Shear zones. There are different types of rocks in the region some hard and some soft contributing to an inherently unstable region. The Himalayan mountain region is considered relatively young and growing and evolving. Mr RK Goel (former Chief Scientist at the Central Institute of Mining and Fuel Research) talks about terrain-specific technical solutions. Small shear zones can be addressed by fore poles and rock anchors. Already known shear zones be incorporated into the designs.  If not known through survey, advance protection terrain-specific measures should be used. He also adds that tunnel-building technology, if correctly applied, poses minimum damage to the environment.

However, the challenge of construction on the Himalayan landscape will remain despite conducting a thorough assessment, seismic and geotechnical studies, and putting extensive safety measures in place. Please note that a leading German-Austrian engineering and consulting firm Bernard Gruppe has been on board the Silkyara tunnel project since 2018.  The NHAI has now ordered a safety audit for all the 29 under-construction tunnels in the country.

The 4.5 km tunnel when completed and operational will save the general public, the Armed Forces, and the 4 Dham pilgrims -26 km of treacherous roads.

Till then, let us celebrate the heart-warming and courageous tale of what the Union Government and State Governments, various National Institutions and agencies, and the Aam Heroes are capable of in a national emergency or crisis. If only we could somehow tap into this huge potential and harness the immense positive synergy in normal times.

Shraddha Saburi

Posted on by
6

This is a tale of a surreal experience I had many, many years ago. Even so, I can vividly remember the dream and how the entire episode unfolded. I had and have this sense of Divine Providence.

At the centre of the story is the divine aura of Shirdi Shri Sai Baba. At our Lucknow residence, we had this simple picture of him in a white garb, sitting on a rock or large stone. The line below said, “Why Fear When I am Here.” My mother was an ardent devotee of this Saint .The Sai Leela periodical was a must-read for her and many a time I went to the Post office for making the annual subscription vide Money Order. She once told me that in the late 40’s a gentleman called Shri Narasimha Swamy had come visiting to our ancestral home in Madras. Over coffee and snacks he told my grandparents and family about this spiritual and humane being and his profound influence in interior Maharashtra.  Indeed, this great apostle of Shri Sai carried the inspiring story of the Baba across the South. In the early 50’s he was the catalyst and the force behind the construction of the Sai Baba temple in Mylapore, Madras. It has since become the Shirdi of the South. Much later, I remember my Mama (maternal uncle whom we have always looked up to) telling me more about Shri Narasimha Swamy. That he was a well-known lawyer and a member of the Madras Legislative Council for many years. A double family tragedy set him off on a spiritual quest to all parts of this vast land. In the mid 1930’s he heard about this godly-man from the small town of Shirdi. A visit to the Samadhi and multiple interactions with the local people and the Baba’s close circle convinced him about his tryst with Divinity. Then followed several meetings with more Sai disciples in the cities of Bombay and Poona- Judges, lawyers, professors, government officials… Today, of course, the Spiritual Master has millions of devotees across the country and in many parts of the world. Shirdi has become a major pilgrimage destination.

The year was 1975. We were on an extended summer vacation at the serene family home in Madras. This was a yearly sojourn we really looked forward to. My father, a retired Army doctor, returned to Lucknow after a two week stay. He had joined a well-known private trust hospital in the city. Those were the days of Inland letters and post cards. A letter from my father jolted me out of the holiday mood. He had written that my roll number had not appeared amongst the list of successful candidates for the Intermediate exam, published in the local newspaper. He had requested a friend of mine to confirm at the college and the list on the Notice Board also did not show my name or number. My world had gone topsy-turvy. I felt acute guilt and shame. I had let my parents down and wasted a crucial year of education. I had become a failure for family and friends. The rest of the Madras trip was a blur. The only other thing that I recall is my mother taking me to the Mylapore temple for a darshan.

The long rail journey back to Lucknow was a miserable experience. The train was scheduled to reach in the early morning and I had a restless night on the upper berth. And then I was there at the breakfast table with my father and couldn’t meet his eyes. He said that yes, it was disappointing but I had to move on. No sharp words, no rebukes. It made me feel even smaller. While getting up he said that I should go and collect my report card and later on we would discuss the next course of action.

So around 11.00 am I got on my bicycle for the long haul to the college. My mother had come to the gate and applied Vibhuti (holy ash) on my forehead.  As I cycled, I thought that it was probably the Hindi paper which had pulled me down.  On reaching the college administration office I met Sharmaji at his table. I requested him to first check the Supplementary List register. This was my best hope. Supplementary meant that I could have another shot at the paper I had flunked in- provided my marks were within 5 marks of the pass-marks cut-off. I could then move on to a graduate degree course albeit from a less reputed college but would not lose out on a year. Sharmaji went through the sheets and shook his head. He then moved on to the Failed Students Register and seemed to spend an eternity looking it over. “You are not here, as well,” he remarked and reached out for the third file. After a couple of minutes he looked up and smiled, “Babua, you have passed. Why have you wasted my time?”  He handed over my report card and took my signature on the duplicate. I had passed with good marks in all the subjects including Hindi. A wave of relief swept through me. As I stammered through my back-story, his smile broadened. He shook my hand warmly and asked me to get him ½ kilo mithai (sweets) from Ram Aasrey or Chowdhary Sweet House, two well-known sweet marts in Lucknow. I virtually broke the record, cycling back home. My mother and brothers were delighted at the sudden turn of events. Three good friends also landed up in some time and they wanted to celebrate the occasion. But it was getting time for my father to reach home for lunch. It was a very happy and chatty group around the table with my buddies joining in. The entire atmosphere had changed in a few hours.

After a long break my friends wanted to hang-out together. So on this hot summer afternoon we cycled to Chowdhary Sweets for Sharmaji’s order plus for family and friends. Then all the way to the college where a surprised Sharmaji was happy to receive his treat. It was past 3 pm and all the cycling had taken its toll. Someone suggested that we catch the movie at the nearby theatre. Tickets were easily available as we entered the plush AC hall. In a few minutes the main feature film started with the hero running and running and running in a desperate manner. He reaches the house of an eminent Judge at night and confesses that he has killed a man. He wants to tell his strange story before the police arrest him. My mates and I looked at each other- wow, this is going to be thrilling. But after the first 15 mins it all unravelled into some bizarre Nagin story. Time to take a nap. Come interval and we took our cycles from the stand and headed for a good Chat (street food) joint. Batashes, aloo-tikki, samosas and lemonade- the works. A great end to an eventful day. The strange thing was that I kept seeing that picture of Sai Baba- off and on.

And then suddenly I heard the shouts of the coolies. The train had reached its destination station. Oh shit, this had all been a dream!

My father had come in the Fiat car to pick us up. With the extra luggage, one of us had to go home in a cycle rickshaw. I quickly opted for it. But there was no escaping my father at the breakfast table. He quietly told me’ that what has happened has happened. I should go and collect my report card.’ As I left my mother applied the Vibhuti (holy ash) to my forehead. I grunted it out to the college on the cycle. On my request Sharmaji pulled out the Supplementary register first. He shook his head and my heart sank. Then to the list of the failed candidates. As I continued to watch numbly he said that I had passed. The report card and the warm handshake. The smiling ask for a ½ kilo of mithai from those famous shops. I shook my head. Have I been here before?!?

The good cheer at home. A happy lunch with family and friends. Then we pedalled off to Chowdhary Sweets enroute to the college. We were drained by the time we handed over the sweet box to a delighted Sharmaji. Then a friend suggested that we chill out at the nearby cinema hall- watch the matinee show.  The film was ‘Milap’ starring an upcoming Shatrughan Sinha and Reena Roy. A re-run before the next big release hit town. As the credits rolled- the lead man is shown running and running but with a touch of agony. He knocks at the door of Judge’s residence. It’s night time. As the Judge checks out this distraught man, he blurts out that he has killed a person and wants to tell his strange story. My pals are excited by this dramatic opening sequence. I whisper to them that there is some Nagin angle to the plot. Sometime later we have all switched off and dozed off.  We make our escape during the interval and go over to a nice Chat joint. The delicacies wipe out the bitter taste of a bad movie experience.

When I discussed all this with family and friends the standard response was that my dream reflected that I was confident of clearing my exams. The culprit was a typo error. A few years back a school-mate who has become a reputed psychiatrist and I were swapping stories; he said that the non-stop running of the movie protagonist was in fact me running away from my sorry situation and ending in a confession. (Read failure-guilt-shame).

For me many things did not add up so rationally. I had been away from Lucknow for 45 days and had no way of knowing what movie was running at the cinema hall near the college. It was a spur of the moment decision to beat the summer heat. Although it was a re-run we had no clue about the film or its subject. With our limited pocket money we picked and watched only Hindi movies with our favourite stars and directors. Milap had never been on our watch list. Also we had never walked out of a movie at half-time before. On the radio the only film program I tuned into was Binaca Geet Mala. Else, it was all about cricket or hockey commentaries. Most of our leisure time was spent on the sports field. Also, those were not the times of social media and IOT with movie spoilers as a common occurrence.

Then about dear Sharmaji. He was just one of the Admin team at the college office- Mr Sebastian, Tiwariji and Mary Madam being the others. I had met and interacted with the others also in equal measure- about forms, fees, special classes, leave applications… The fear of failing the Hindi test paper was also not misplaced. It was a tough paper that year. Internal assessment would have seen us all through but we also dreaded the possibility of it being checked by some strict lecturer at say Allahabad University. Indeed, I came to know later on that some of my classmates who were also pretty good at the subject had their grades pulled down by the Hindi marks. They got a lower Division.

Finally, there is the matter of the Sai Baba image virtually punctuating my dream narrative. Add to it my mother’s simple and pure faith. The uncanny sequence of events. Way beyond just intuition – moving into the metaphysical space. An undercurrent of curious energy which transcends normal explanations.

Shirdi Shri Sai Baba. Shraddha Saburi. Faith. Patience.