Over the two weeks that dozens of Indian construction workers have been trapped in a Himalayan road tunnel, the authorities have reported meter-by-meter progress toward reaching them and offered hopeful timelines for their rescue.
Yet 15 days after disaster struck, the 41 men are still stuck.
And now, as Indian officials try a new tack — drilling down through the top of a mountain — they acknowledge that the effort will take several days, if it works at all.
“We feel a looming sense of doom,” said Jyotish Basumatary, whose brother, Sanjay Basumatary, is trapped inside.
If it rains, “the workers’ hands would freeze,” he said by phone.
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”, Jyotish Basumatary, Sanjay Basumatary, ” Jyotish