After Machines Fail, ‘Rat Miners’ to Help Rescue 41 Men Stuck in Indian Tunnel

Rat miners stand before they begin manual drilling as rescue operations are in progress after workers got trapped in a collapse of an under-construction tunnel, in Uttarkashi in the northern state of Uttarakhand, India, on Nov. 27, 2023. Francis Mascarenhas/Reuters

SILKYARA, India—Rescuers on Monday brought in “rat miners” to drill through a narrow pipe and help pull out 41 construction workers trapped in a tunnel in the Indian Himalayas for more than two weeks after high-powered machines failed, officials said.

The men, low-wage workers from India’s poorest states, have been stuck in the 4.5km (3 miles) tunnel in Uttarakhand state since it collapsed on Nov. 12.