Deadly cave-ins keep repeating frequently

Over the years, India has witnessed several major tunnel collapses, raising concerns about work er safety, structural stability, and the need for stringent safety protocols. However, the concerns fade away in some time, till the next disaster strikes. Toxic gases, generated by a sudden explosive release of suspected methane trapped or embedded in rocks on July 20, 2026, claimed the lives of at least 20 workers in an under-construction Head Race Tunnel (HRT) of the NHPC’s 500 MW Teesta Stage VI Hydropower Project in Sikkim.

Five others remain trapped about 1.5 km inside the tunnel. The accident underlines the hazards of in frastructure development across the country, and the grave risk to workers. Like in past accidents pan India, PSU behemoth NHPC has said a thorough investigation will be conducted to ascertain the cause of the inci dent, while Sikkim government has also announced the constitution of a high-level committee for the same purpose, however the re ports mostly never see light of day, or are ignored in future references.

The roof of an under construction stretch of the tunnel in the Srisailam Left Bank Canal (SLBC) proj ect collapsed, killing eight persons in Telangana due to water seepage and soil movement. An under construction 1,245-meter-long tunnel, intended to bypass Mandi’s national highway, collapsed in November 2022 while approximately 50 workers were inside, but all escaped unharmed.

In January 2025, a coal mine in the Umrangso area of Dima Hasao district, Assam was flooded, trapping nine workers inside. After two days of rescue operations, only four bodies were recovered, highlighting the dangers associated with unregulated mining activities.On 12 November 2023, a section of the Silkyara Bend Barkot tunnel, planned to connect National Highway 134 in Uttarakhand, India, caved in during construction. The collapse trapped 41 workers inside the tunnel.  All 41 workers were rescued, and the collapse triggered a safety audit of other tunnels in the area.

Later, in July 2026, the same tunnel experienced a fatal concrete lin ing collapse that killed one worker. Likewise, the Meppadi Tunnel landslide in July 2026 due to intense monsoon rains triggered a massive slope failure that buried the exit section of an under construction twin-tunnel project in Meppadi, Kerala. The collapse, compounded by accumulated tunnel debris, swept through the construction site, resulting in seven deaths. In 2018, twelve members of a junior association football team, along with their assistant coach, were trapped in the Tham Luang Nang Non cave in northern Thailand due to heavy rainfall and flooding.

 The team remained stuck for nearly 18 days after which they were successfully rescued, marking one of the most complex and globally recognized cave rescues in history.