Key Points
A group of six skilled miners from Jhansi, Uttar Pradesh today successfully dug a safe passage to rescue workers trapped inside the Silkyara tunnel in Uttarkashi after high-tech American machines failed..
These miners, known for their expertise in manual excavation, manually dig their way through the debris, covering a distance of 10-12 meters to reach the trapped workers..
After all the high-tech machinery failed for the horizontal through-the-rubble tunneling work, officials decided that the final stretch would be handled through a manual approach in which individual workers will go into the escape passage with drills, as well as gas-cutters to tackle obstacles like iron girders...
Rat-hole mining is a controversial and hazardous procedure in which miners in small groups go down narrow burrows to excavate small quantities of coal...
On December 13, 2018, 15 miners who were involved in illegal coal mining in Meghalaya died after they got trapped inside the tunnel as a breach caused water from the nearby Lytein River to enter the underground mine.. There are two types of rat-hole mining techniques:. 1. Side Cutting: Narrow tunnels are excavated into the hill slopes, and workers enter these openings to locate the coal seam...
You might be interested in
Rat-hole miners all the buzz after Uttarkashi. It's time India ensured their safety
02, Dec, 23When sophisticated heavy-duty machines gave up, it was a band of 12 rat-hole miners who became the saviours of workers trapped in the Uttarkashi tunnel collapse.
How rat-hole miners saved 41 workers trapped in Uttarkashi tunnel
28, Nov, 23The rat-hole miners, a team of seven, were able to dig over 10 meters (till the end) within 48 hours at the Silkyara tunnel in Uttarkashi, that led to a major breakthrough for the rescue operation.
'Rat miners' to the rescue: How trapped India tunnel workers were saved
28, Nov, 23When heavy machinery broke down trying to break through the debris trapping 41 workers in a tunnel in the Indian Himalayas, authorities called in a group of people whose profession is effectively banned in the country - "rat-hole mining".
Uttarakhand tunnel rescue: Rat-mining gets the job done!
28, Nov, 23But officials only turned to rat-hole mining when more modern equipment collapsed in the face of the daunting challenge | Latest News India
Indian ‘rat miner’ rescuers reach 41 men trapped in tunnel
28, Nov, 23Workers, who have been trapped for 17 days, are to be pulled out one by one, officials say
Uttarkashi tunnel rescue: How banned rat-hole mining is saving trapped workers
28, Nov, 23The practice of rat-hole mining is banned by the National Green Tribunal. The experts of the primitive technique are now at the tunnel site working to rescue the trapped 41 workers.
Uttarkashi tunnel rescue operations: Rescuers just 3 metres away from 41 trapped workers
28, Nov, 23The rat-hole mining experts have been trying to create a passageway to rescue the trapped workers by inserting pipes into dug-out areas so that the trapped workers can be brought out on wheeled stretchers.
‘Hero-like treatment will fade out soon’: Rat-hole miners on Uttarkashi rescue
11, Dec, 23The 12 miners feel their newfound fame would wean off rather soon, leaving behind the harsh reality of their lives — “we will remain poor”. | Latest News India
Rat miner recalls meeting workers before evacuation began. What he said
28, Nov, 23Rat miners engage in ‘rat-hole mining’, a manual drilling technique where narrow pits are meticulously dug by skilled workers. | Latest News India
Uttarkashi tunnel rescue: Rat-hole miners on how manual drilling will be done
28, Nov, 23Amid the Silkyara tunnel rescue operation, rat-hole mining teams were inducted into the mission on Monday. The team of six sheds light on their modus operandi.