Telangana tunnel collapse: Rescue operations have been underway at the Srisailam Left Bank Canal (SLBC) in India's Telangana, with authorities on Monday (Feb 24) racing against time to save eight workers who were trapped on Saturday after a tunnel's roof collapsed in the Nagarkurnool district. 

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After over 48 hours, chances of their survival are bleak with water and silt impeding rescue operations, but rescuers are breaking their backs to evacuate the workers. 

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The Engineer Task Force (ETF) of the Indian Army also deployed its equipment and medical teams to clear debris and facilitate the safe evacuation of trapped workers. 

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So far, no contact has been made with the trapped workers but authorities are trying to find ways to ascertain their current status. 

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While speaking to the news agency ANI, L&T's endoscopic operator Dowdeep at the rescue site said, "Through the endoscopic camera, we can track what is happening inside the tunnel." 

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"We have done this during the rescue operation in Uttarakhand as well. 2 teams have come. Endoscopic and robotic cameras have been brought," he added. 

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Watch the video here: 

https://x.com/ANI/status/1893874220943409502 

The Srisailam Left Bank Canal is an irrigation project, which aims to provide irrigation water to the Nalgonda district by drawing water from the Srisailam reservoir through tunnels. 

The SLBC project is a critical part of the Srisailam Dam project, which is one of the largest hydroelectric projects in India. The dam is constructed across the Krishna River and has a capacity of 1670 MW. 

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CM monitors rescue efforts 

Telangana Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy has actively been overseeing the ongoing rescue operations, with ministers Uttam Kumar Reddy and Jupally Krishna Rao on the ground. 

https://x.com/TelanganaCMO/status/1893706963651072057 

Who are the trapped workers? 

The trapped workers include: 
Manoj Kumar (Project Engineer) from Uttar Pradesh 
Srinivas (Field Engineer) from Uttar Pradesh
Sandeep Sahu (Worker) from Jharkhand
Jataks (Worker) from Jharkhand
Santosh Sahu (Worker) from Jharkhand
Anuj Sahu (Worker) from Jharkhand
Sunny Singh (Worker) from Jammu & Kashmir
Gurpreet Singh (Worker) from Punjab

(With inputs from agencies)