How Gabbar Singh Negi, Senior-Most Among 41 Workers Kept Calm, Helped Others Trapped In Silkyara Tunnel
41 construction workers were rescued from the Silkyara tunnel after being trapped there for 17 days. The workers are from Jharkhand, Uttarakhand, and Bihar. They were trapped in the tunnel for more than a week.
It is a happy homecoming for the 41 construction workers after they were rescued from the Silkyara tunnel after being trapped there for 17 days.
The world came crashing down for Viswajit Kumar, Subodh Kumar, Rajendra Bedia, Sukram, Tinku Sardar, Gunodhar, Sameer, Ravindra, Ranjeet, Mahadev, Bhukttu Murmu, Jamra Oraon, Vijay Horo, Ganapati - all from Jharkhand, Gabbar Singh Negi, and Pushkar - both from Uttarakhand, Saba Ahmed, Sonu Sah, Virendra Kiskoo, and Sushil Kumar - all from Bihar, Manir Talukdar, Sevik Pakhera, and Jaydev Parmanik - all from West Bengal, Akhilesh Kumar, Ankit, Ram Milan, Satya Dev, Santosh, Jai Prakash, Ram Sundar, and Manjit - all from Uttar Pradesh, Tapan Mandal, Bhagwan Batra, Viseshar Naik, Raju Naik, and Dhiren - all from Odisha, Sanjay and Ram Prasad from Assam, and Vishal from Himachal Pradesh on the morning of November 12, when a portion of the under-construction Silkyara tunnel collapsed, trapping them.
After the initial shock, they were happy to be alive and unhurt while waiting for rescue teams to reach them.
But that wait became hours, days, and weeks... with them even starting to wonder if and when the help will come.
Who is Gabbar Singh Negi?
According to the evacuated men, one of them, Gabbar Singh Negi, kept his morale high and encouraged others to stay positive.
The senior-most among the trapped men, Negi, a resident of Pauri Garhwal district, emerged as the 'leader' of the group.
How Gabbar Singh Negi helped others
According to his brother Jaymal Singh Negi, Gabbar Singh Negi was doing Yoga, meditation, and other exercises inside the tunnel and also encouraged others to do the same.
Since contact was established with the outside world, Negi also spoke to the authorities, including Uttarakhand Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami, about their condition inside the tunnel.
#WATCH | Uttarakhand CM Pushkar Singh Dhami had a conversation with Gabbar Singh Negi and Saba Ahmed, the workers trapped in the tunnel under construction in Silkyara, Uttarkashi, to inquire about their well-being and also informed them about the rescue operation going on at a¡ pic.twitter.com/uBqGQMppVV
¡ª ANI (@ANI) November 23, 2023
What PM Modi said
Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who spoke to the 41 men after they were rescued, lauded their courage.
"I congratulate you on coming out safely after being in danger for so many days. It is a matter of happiness for me, and I cannot express it in words. If something bad had happened, can't say how we would have taken that. It is God's grace that all of you are safe."
#WATCH | Prime Minister Narendra Modi's telephonic conversation with the workers who were successfully rescued from Uttarakhand's Silkyara tunnel after 17 days pic.twitter.com/G1q26t5Ke8
¡ª ANI (@ANI) November 29, 2023
"Seventeen days is not a short time. You all showed a lot of courage and encouraged each other," Modi told them.
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