Delhi news: DDA razes house of rat-hole miner who saved trapped workers in Uttarkashi's Silkyara tunnel

During a demolition drive by the Delhi Development Authority (DDA), a house of a rat-hole miner was also demolished who was among the rescuers who saved the lives of 41 trapped workers in Uttarkashi's Silkyara tunnel in Uttarakhand last year. The DDA razed several houses in Khajoori Khas on Wednesday, and one of those now homeless is Wakeel Hassan, the rat-hole miner.

"On February 28, a demolition drive was conducted by the DDA to remove encroachment from its acquired land in village Khajoori Khas. The land was part of planned development land," the DDA said in a statement, in response to a query about the drive.

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The DDA said the demolition drive was carried out on land that was “part of planned development land”. Police said several structures built illegally were demolished during the drive.

Hassan has shared a video of the area, claiming the building he and his family was residing in was "razed in the drive".

In the video clip, Hassan also claimed that he had to go to a police station in connection with this incident. In the video clip, he was accompanied by Munna Qureshi, another member of his team who rescued the trapped workers, who also said they were beaten up by the police.

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Hassan alleged, “Earlier, I had requested the authorities and the government to give this house to us but to no avail. Today, without any information, DDA came and demolished it”.

According to a report by AajTak, the rat-hole miner said he bought the house in 2013 and the registry of the house is from 1987. But still, the administration demolished his house. Hasan said that I have only one demand that my house should be given to me. If I am not given my house, I will go on a fast, the news website mentioned.

However, the Delhi Police officer said several other structures that were built illegally were demolished by the authorities. "We gave them the assistance in controlling law and order during the drive," he said.

Hassan and five other members of the rat-hole mining team live in north-east Delhi's Khajoori Khas, while the rest are from Uttar Pradesh's Bulandshahr.

Their special mining techniques were crucial in removing the rubble inside the under-construction Silkyara tunnel in Uttarakhand. Forty-one workers got trapped when a part of the tunnel collapsed on November 12 and remained trapped for around 17 days before being rescued.