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What were your first thoughts when you realised you had been trapped inside the tunnel?
Gabar Singh Negi: Initially, I was worried but that feeling lasted for maybe one day. After the authorities reached out to us and work started on our rescue, I knew in my heart that we would get out. It was just a question of when. Therefore, I maintained my cool and kept on motivating others, too, as I knew there would be light at the end of the tunnel eventually.
Sabah Ahmed: Initially, I was a little scared, but then I told myself: ‘Dar ke aagey jeet hai’ (There is victory beyond fear).This line gave me strength and also helped me motivate the other men.
How did you spend your time inside? What did you do?
Gabar Singh Negi: I had faced a similar situation earlier when I was caught in a landslide in Sikkim in 2011 for several days. So I had a fair idea of how such a crisis situation can feel like. The key is not to think about the consequences but instead keep your mind focused on positive things. So, the very first day when we were trapped and people began to despair, I knew that we needed to act. The first thing that I did was to switch on and off the water pump inside the tunnel which led to water flowing out. This gave an indication to outside workers that we were alive but stuck inside. Once rescue work started, my job was to keep convincing the others that we would soon be out. It was also my responsibility, since at 52, I was the eldest among them. Most of them are like my children or younger brothers.
Sabah Ahmed: In childhood, we had played games like chor-sipahi, raja-mantri… and these games came in handy for us during the past 17 days. It helped keep our minds engaged. There were days when we even tried cricket inside the tunnel. We would gossip and sometimes crack jokes in order to keep the environment light. Although in normal circumstances, when we used to be at work, being a foreman, I ensured disciplined behaviour among the workers, but this was a different situation altogether, and we became more like friends.
How did your families react to the crisis?
Gabar Singh Negi: My family members had faith in the Almighty and through their prayers and the combined efforts of everyone, we were able to overcome the situation.
Sabah Ahmed: Since I have small children who wouldn’t have grasped the gravity of the situation, they were told that my mobile phone had broken, and therefore I was unable to speak to them as frequently as I did – which was every few days.
After going through this ordeal, do you plan to return to tunnel work again, or would you like to look at other job options?
Gabar Singh Negi: I have to run my family and this is the job that I have been doing all these years, so I would not leave it. This incident has not demotivated me. I will be back at the site soon.
Sabah Ahmed: The trapping episode has only strengthened my resolve to not leave this job mid-way. I will complete the work of the tunnel, whatever happens.
Gabar Singh Negi: Initially, I was worried but that feeling lasted for maybe one day. After the authorities reached out to us and work started on our rescue, I knew in my heart that we would get out. It was just a question of when. Therefore, I maintained my cool and kept on motivating others, too, as I knew there would be light at the end of the tunnel eventually.
Sabah Ahmed: Initially, I was a little scared, but then I told myself: ‘Dar ke aagey jeet hai’ (There is victory beyond fear).This line gave me strength and also helped me motivate the other men.
How did you spend your time inside? What did you do?
Gabar Singh Negi: I had faced a similar situation earlier when I was caught in a landslide in Sikkim in 2011 for several days. So I had a fair idea of how such a crisis situation can feel like. The key is not to think about the consequences but instead keep your mind focused on positive things. So, the very first day when we were trapped and people began to despair, I knew that we needed to act. The first thing that I did was to switch on and off the water pump inside the tunnel which led to water flowing out. This gave an indication to outside workers that we were alive but stuck inside. Once rescue work started, my job was to keep convincing the others that we would soon be out. It was also my responsibility, since at 52, I was the eldest among them. Most of them are like my children or younger brothers.
Sabah Ahmed: In childhood, we had played games like chor-sipahi, raja-mantri… and these games came in handy for us during the past 17 days. It helped keep our minds engaged. There were days when we even tried cricket inside the tunnel. We would gossip and sometimes crack jokes in order to keep the environment light. Although in normal circumstances, when we used to be at work, being a foreman, I ensured disciplined behaviour among the workers, but this was a different situation altogether, and we became more like friends.
How did your families react to the crisis?
Gabar Singh Negi: My family members had faith in the Almighty and through their prayers and the combined efforts of everyone, we were able to overcome the situation.
Sabah Ahmed: Since I have small children who wouldn’t have grasped the gravity of the situation, they were told that my mobile phone had broken, and therefore I was unable to speak to them as frequently as I did – which was every few days.
After going through this ordeal, do you plan to return to tunnel work again, or would you like to look at other job options?
Gabar Singh Negi: I have to run my family and this is the job that I have been doing all these years, so I would not leave it. This incident has not demotivated me. I will be back at the site soon.
Sabah Ahmed: The trapping episode has only strengthened my resolve to not leave this job mid-way. I will complete the work of the tunnel, whatever happens.
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