NEW DELHI: Additional workers sent from Kolhapur to assist with construction work at the SLBC tunnel in Telangana, where eight people remain trapped, are returning home due to safety concerns and fear of entering the collapsed structure.
The workers, deployed by Jaypee company for rescue efforts, have refused to enter the tunnel citing safety fears.

Awadesh Yadav, a worker said, “We came from Kolhapur to help Jaypee company. Eight people are trapped inside, so our company sent us for assistance. People came for the rescue, but now no one is staying as they are afraid and leaving out of fear. Our supervisors asked us to move forward first, but we said he should go ahead. If they are not going, how can we? We know the situation inside. We came to help our brothers, but we don’t have the courage to enter the tunnel.”
Eight workers involved in the Srisailam Left Bank Canal (SLBC) tunnel project remain trapped after a section of the tunnel collapsed on February 22.
Jaiprakash Gaur, Founder Chairman of Jaypee Group, whose flagship company Jaiprakash Associates Ltd. is responsible for the tunnel boring, addressed the incident on Wednesday. He acknowledged the risks involved in such challenging projects, stating that accidents can occur during difficult work. He assured that rescue teams are making every effort to bring the trapped workers to safety.
Of the eight individuals trapped, two engineers and four labourers are employed by Jaiprakash Associates. The workers have been identified as Manoj Kumar (Uttar Pradesh), Sri Niwas (Uttar Pradesh), Sunny Singh (Jammu & Kashmir), Gurpreet Singh (Punjab), and Sandeep Sahu, Jegta Xess, Santosh Sahu, and Anuj Sahau, all from Jharkhand. Among them, two are engineers, two are operators, and the remaining four are labourers.