All 41 workers are normal, can go home: AIIMS-Rishikesh

The workers were rescued from the Silkyara tunnel on Tuesday night after a long-drawn operation. They have been advised to go to the nearest hospital after two weeks for a check-up after being released from AIIMS Rishikesh.

Rishikesh:The AIIMS-Rishikesh on Thursday declared all 41 workers who were evacuated from Silkyara tunnel fit to return home. Briefing the media here on the workers health condition who were evacuated from Silkyara tunnel, Dr Ravikant said they were thoroughly examined and their blood test, X-ray, and ECG reports are normal.

"They are physically normal and clinically stable. We have given them clearance to return home," he said. "The workers were rescued from the tunnel Tuesday night after 17 days, the workers might need acclimatisation. They have been advised to go to the nearest hospital after two weeks for a check-up", he added.

Doctors from AIIMS-Rishikesh will stay connected with the workers through telemedicine to monitor their mental health for the next few weeks, he said. "On the basis of their major organ screening, we can say they are fit to travel. As they were taken good care of during their confinement in the tunnel with regular feeding, there was no case of starvation. They are mostly quite young or of middle age. That also helped them stay fit," Ravikant said.

Dr. Narendra Kumar, Assistant Professor of Hospital Administration, AIIMS Rishikesh, said, "The 41 workers are from 7 different states. Most of the workers hail from Jharkhand, Uttar Pradesh and Bihar. Everyone has got medical clearance. Probably, workers from Jharkhand and Odisha will be given leave today". "The hospital management is in touch with the nodal officers of respective states and trying to contact with nodal officers of other states".

Earlier in the day, Governor Lieutenant Gurmeet Singh reached Rishikesh AIIMS to know the condition of the workers. AIIMS Director Professor Meenu Singh introduced all the workers to the Governor. The workers rescued from Uttarkashi Silkyara Tunnel on Tuesday were first taken to Chinyalisaur Community Health Centre where primary treatment was done. On Wednesday, all of them were airlifted to Rishikesh AIIMS, where doctors examined them and kept them under observation.