According to the NDRF Commandant, around 300 personnel, including 100 NDRF members, along with teams from SDRF, the Indian Army, and Singareni, are actively participating in the rescue efforts.
NDRF Commandant VVN Prasanna Kumar on March 3 said that an operation to save eight workers trapped following the collapse of the SLBC tunnel was underway at full capacity, with around twelve agencies working around the clock to locate the trapped victims.
"Actually, the operation is going on in full swing. Approximately twelve agencies are working around the clock to find the victims. Unfortunately, we have not been able to locate them so far," said the National Disaster Response Force Commandant.
He mentioned that both the Telangana and Central governments have enlisted top experts from across the country to assist with the complex tunnel operation. "The intricacy of the tunnel operation has prevented us from achieving success so far. However, we have mobilized maximum manpower in a well-coordinated manner, and we are hopeful that success will be achieved soon," Kumar said to Deccan Chronicle.
According to the NDRF Commandant, around 300 personnel, including 100 NDRF members, along with teams from SDRF, the Indian Army, and Singareni, are actively participating in the rescue efforts.
"The primary challenge we face is the TBM (Tunnel Boring Machine), a 1,500-ton machine that was damaged inside the tunnel, which has become a significant obstacle," he added.
On Sunday, Telangana Chief Minister Revanth Reddy visited the Srisailam Left Bank Canal (SLBC) tunnel site to assess the progress of the ongoing rescue operation, which aims to save the eight workers trapped inside the tunnel in Nagarkurnool.
Earlier on Saturday, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MLAs visited the SLBC tunnel accident site in Nagarkurnool to assess the situation.
BJP MLA Maheshwar Reddy stated that the accident happened due to the mismanagement of both the current and previous state governments, stating that negligence had led to the disaster.
Reddy said that rescue operations are underway and that the state government is responsible for the accident. He added that the state government neglected several issues, which has now put the lives of eight workers at stake.