Tuesday’s breakthrough in the Uttarkashi rescue operation was made possible by rat-hole miners, as Munna Qureshi became the first to reach the men who were trapped.
The 17-day long rescue operation in the Silkyara tunnel came to a successful conclusion on Wednesday, with all 41 workers emerging from the trap unscathed. The rescuers were hailed for their unwavering perseverance and hard work, and they were in the spotlight. In his speech, Prime Minister Modi praised the spirit of everyone involved in the rescue effort and stated that everyone on the mission set a remarkable example of cooperation and humanity. Even though the rat-hole miners completed the final mile of the Uttarakhand tunnel 24X7, numerous government agencies with massive forces were stationed in the unpredictable terrain. Munna Qureshi, who arrived at the workers first, has been acclaimed as the operation’s hero.
Rat-hole miner Munna Qureshi, 29, is employed by a trenchless engineering services company in Delhi that cleans water and sewer lines. To clear the final 12 metres of debris, dozens of rat-hole miners were transported to Uttarakhand on Monday, including him.
The US-made auger machine was pulled out of the tunnel after it malfunctioned, and rat-hole miners were the last line of defence in the rescue effort. The practise of “rat-hole mining,” which involves excavating small pits to extract coal, was outlawed in 2014 due to its lack of scientific validity. Munna Qureshi reported that he saw the 41 trapped workers on Tuesday night when he removed the final rock.
Munna Qureshi said, “They embraced me, cheered with applause, and thanked me profusely.”
Following their gruelling operation, Monu Kumar, Wakeel Khan, Feroz, Parsadi Lodhi, and Vipin Rajout were the other rat-hole miners who made it to the trapped men. The miners were lifted by the jubilant men who had been waiting for a breakthrough from the other side for a long time. “Almonds were given to me,” a miner reported. Before the NDRF arrived to rescue the men who were trapped, the miners remained there for thirty minutes.
