Uttarkashi | Laying of pipes through the rubble at Silkyara tunnel has been completed and the 41 workers trapped there for the last 16 days will be evacuated soon, Uttarakhand Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami said.

Rescue workers broke through the 60-metre stretch of rubble in the Silkyara tunnel in Uttarakhand on Tuesday noon using rat-hole mining technique.

In a post on X, Dhami said, "With immense blessings of Baba Baukhnag, prayers of crores of country's citizens and relentless hard work of the rescue agencies involved in the operations, pipe-laying through the tunnel has been completed and our brothers will soon be evacuated." A portion of the tunnel collapsed on November 12, blocking the exit with 41 workers inside.