In this image provided by the Information and Public Relations Department, Government of Sikkim, an ambulance moves through an under-construction tunnel at a hydropower project in Samardung village, about 40km from Gangtok, India on Jul 20, 2026. (Photo: Government of Sikkim via AP)
22 Jul 2026 02:14PM
(Updated: 22 Jul 2026 07:20PM)
NEW DELHI: The death toll from a tunnel collapse at an under-construction hydroelectric project in India's remote northeast has risen to at least 20, officials said on Wednesday (Jul 22).The incident occurred on Monday in Namchi district in the Himalayan state of Sikkim, where workers were constructing a tunnel for a state-run hydropower project on the Teesta river."Out of the 25 who were trapped, 13 bodies have been recovered so far," Rajiv Roka, director of the Sikkim State Disaster Management Authority, told AFP."The rescuers have also seen seven to eight more bodies inside but they have not been able to retrieve them so far."
Members of the rescue team carry oxygen cylinders outside the entrance to an under-construction tunnel at a hydropower project in Samardung village, about 40km from Gangtok, India on Jul 21, 2026. (Photo: AP)
