SLBC tunnel tragedy: Second body recovered, six workers still missing

Deceased identified as Manoj Kumar, engineer from Bangar Mau in Uttar Pradesh; Rs 25 lakh ex-gratia to be provided to his family

Hyderabad: Rescue operations at the Srisailam Left Bank Canal (SLBC) tunnel were overshadowed by sorrow on Tuesday as one more body was unearthed from debris, bringing the total recovered to two. The body was found approximately 50 metres from the conveyor belt during excavation efforts carried out with the help of a mini excavator. Over a month has passed since the tunnel’s roof collapsed, trapping eight workers inside on February 22.

Rescue teams acted swiftly to retrieve the body and transported it to the Nagarkurnool Government Hospital for further procedures, including a post-mortem. Officials later identified the deceased as Manoj Kumar (51), an engineer employed by Jaiprakash Associates. Manoj’s body will now be sent to his native village, Bangar Mau in Unnao district of Uttar Pradesh.

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District Collector Santosh Badavat announced that a three-member team, comprising a revenue officer, a police officer, and a Health Department officer, would accompany the body to ensure its safe handover to the family. As directed by Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy, an ex-gratia of Rs 25 lakh will be provided to Manoj Kumar’s family as a measure of support.

Officials said the rescue efforts would remain focused on locating the six workers still missing in the collapsed 14-kilometre tunnel. Authorities have deployed four excavators to hasten the removal of debris. Central and State government agencies are collaborating closely, with the pace of operations being stepped up. Efforts are underway to meet the tentative April 10 deadline for completing the rescue operations.

On February 22, the SLBC tunnel collapse initially trapped eight workers while approximately 50 others managed to escape. Since then, rescuers have faced serious challenges in their efforts to locate and recover the missing workers. The first body, that of Gurpreet Singh, a tunnel boring machine operator, was recovered on the 16th day of rescue operations.