SDC released an extensive media monitoring brief on the recent tunnel collapse in Silkyara in district Uttarkashi. The document is a compilation of collected and archived news clippings for the entire duration of the Silkyara disaster. The 226 page document is a summary of key news items that were published in national and state wide print media. These were sorted and classified based on broad categories, and have now been digitized for public access.
On November 12, 2023, while still under construction, a portion of the Silkyara Bend–Barkot tunnel, intended to link National Highway 134 in Uttarkashi, collapsed. The collapse took place at about 5:30 IST, trapping 41 personnel within the tunnel.
Numerous government agencies from the Centre and State, including the National Disaster Response Force, the State Disaster Response Force, the Uttarkashi district authorities, Uttarakhand Police, engineers from the Indian Army Corps and Project Shivalik of the Border Roads Organization, the Indian Air Force and many others were involved in the rescue efforts that were initiated right away.
Due to the fact that the initial rescue attempts proved difficult because of the types of debris generated by the collapse, the government eventually brought in "rat-hole" miners who were able to employ manual mining methods and extend an access pipe to the trapped workers.
SDC believes in the power of archiving and documenting such disasters and climate centric changes in Uttarakhand. We have regularly been engaging in extensive archiving of media updates, identifying trends and communicating its findings through an array of detailed summaries and reports in Uttarakhand.
We hope this document can be a tool for information, research, advocacy or for reference to various stakeholders such as government officials in the centre and in state, development practitioners, researchers, social workers, civil society organizations and media groups.
Link: Media Monitoring Brief: Tunnel Collapse Disaster in Silkyara, Uttarkashi
