Bhubaneswar: Rainwater mixed with mud entered an under-construction railway tunnel near Adenigarh in Boudh district following a deluge on Saturday and Sunday. The tunnel is part of the Dasapalla-Purunakatak section of Khurda-Balangir new railway line.Repair work will be taken up after the rain stops, railway sources said. Several parts of Odisha, including Boudh, Kandhamal and Nayagarh districts, have received heavy rainfall under the influence of a well-marked low-pressure area over Bay of Bengal. The system has intensified into a depression and is likely to trigger heavy rain at several places in the state.Rainwater and mud entered the tunnel construction area, filling up the site with slush. At tunnel-4, four workers were trapped inside after water entered the tunnel. They were safely evacuated, and work was stopped, sources said.Rajendra Satapathy, a local resident who helped rescue the labourers, said the four were working inside the tunnel on Saturday night. “After rainwater from the hills entered the tunnel, they could not come out. They sat on iron rods inside the tunnel as the water level rose. We rescued them in the morning,” he said.The tunnel is located in hilly and forested terrain in Boudh district, close to the borders of Nayagarh and Kandhamal districts. Khajuripada in Kandhamal district recorded the state’s highest rainfall of 28 cm by 2 pm on Sunday, while Harabhanga in Boudh district received 13 cm. The tunnel has openings used to move heavy machinery and equipment for construction work. Water entered the tunnel through these openings, an East Coast Railway official said.“After the rain stops, we will clear the mud and loose soil and pump out the water before resuming work,” the official said.Last year, the railways completed the breakthrough of Odisha’s longest railway tunnel, T-4, under Khurda Road-Balangir rail line project. The 4,185-metre tunnel connects Adenigarh and Charichhak stations in Boudh district.
