Tunnel Collapse Kills 29 in IndiaTwenty-nine labourers have been killed on 2nd August after a tunnel shaft collapsed in the Himalayas as part of the works for the Tehri hydro project in the northern Indian state of Uttaranchal. The workers were trapped whilst working on tunnel 3 of the scheme. Work on 190 m out of the proposed 220 m shaft or spillway has already been completed. More than 80 workers were in tunnel 3 of the project at the time of the accident. Over 50 of them were rescued, some of them with injuries.Local officials have blamed the heavy rains in the area that caused a massive mud slide and the consequent collapse of a 190 m shaft in an underground tunnel of the project. But independent reports from the area suggest that construction work was being carried out round the clock as the contractor, Jay Prakash Associates, rushed towards a September deadline to complete this tunnel 3 of the 2,400 MW Tehri hydroelectric project.The collapse has raised serious questions about the safety of Asia's highest dam, as well as the quality of monitoring by Tehri Hydro Development Corp., the central government agency responsible for supervising the design and construction work. The tunnel is part of a controversial hydroelectric power project which has seen massive protests from environmentalists for years. More than 100,000 people have been displaced by the 42 sq km lake it has created, submerging the entire town of Tehri and nearly 125 villages. This is the second such accident on the 260.5 m-high Tehri dam. Sixteen labourers were buried alive under piles of earth three years ago.An inquiry into the disaster has been ordered but observers doubt its independence. Two of the three members of the investigation team belong to the Central Water Commission and the Central Electricity Authority, the same bodies that had earlier declared the project to be viable and safe. The investigators have been asked to look for the cause of the accident, find out lapses that may have taken place and suggest possible measures to prevent recurrence of such incidents. They are to submit their report within one month. Visit http://thdc.nic.in 35/04.