NEA employees urge PM Shah to speed up rescue of workers trapped in tunnels

Kathmandu, August 31

Nepal Electricity Authority employees have written to Prime Minister Balen Shah, warning that the lives of their colleagues and workers at several hydropower projects are at risk because of delays in rescue operations.

Fearing retaliation if they revealed their identities, the employees wrote the letter to the prime minister under pseudonyms. They said every minute is critical to saving the lives of people trapped inside tunnels, but the government has been slow to accelerate rescue efforts.

In the letter obtained by Onlinekhabar from a trusted source, the employees questioned why foreign rescuers and other groups ready to assist had not been granted permission and coordinated with in time.

They also questioned why rescue operations appeared to be taking place sequentially, with work at one location having to be completed before operations could begin at another.

“Why are we unable to conduct rescue operations simultaneously at all the locations where they are urgently needed?” they asked.

The employees said rescue operations inside the tunnels had already been delayed significantly and that every moment had become extremely critical.

“We sincerely request that necessary steps be taken immediately to accelerate the ongoing rescue operations,” they wrote in the letter to the prime minister.

Describing the situation as extremely serious, they said there was no time for lengthy administrative procedures or extensive formalities.

“The priority right now is only to save lives. Every minute of delay could mean losing someone’s chance of survival,” they said in the joint letter.

They urged the prime minister to intervene immediately to remove unnecessary administrative delays, grant immediate permission to all capable national and international rescue teams willing to help, and mobilise the necessary resources simultaneously at all critical locations.

“Please take action now. There is no time to wait,” they wrote.

Hundreds of employees and workers involved in projects operated by the Nepal Electricity Authority and its subsidiary companies have been reported missing following the Rasuwa floods.

The floods caused extensive damage to several hydropower projects, including Upper Trishuli 3A, Upper Trishuli 3B, Rasuwagadhi, Chilime, Trishuli, Devighat and Upper Trishuli 3B.

So far, the Nepal Army has managed to recover only two bodies from the tunnel of the Chilime Hydropower Project.

An army team also entered the tunnel at the Rasuwagadhi project but returned after failing to find anyone inside. However, a source at the Nepal Electricity Authority said at least three people had been working at the power house that day because it was in operation, and that the army team returned without reaching the power house.

Apart from Nepal Electricity Authority projects, hundreds of people working at projects including Upper Trishuli-1, Langtang, Mailung Khola, Rasuwa Bhotekoshi and Middle Trishuli have also been reported missing.

Families of the missing and other stakeholders have expressed anger over what they describe as delays by the government in carrying out search and rescue operations.

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