Ranchi

As workers at an under-construction tunnel in Sikkim's Namchi district prepared to break for lunch, 19-year-old Babloo Sahu handed meal packets to his elder brother Krishna and others before stepping out. Moments later, a loud explosion shattered the routine.

"I told my brother to have his lunch and came outside. Suddenly, I heard an explosion. When I turned back, I saw the tunnel collapse before my eyes," Babloo told PTI over the phone from Sikkim.

The explosion, suspected to have been caused by methane gas, triggered the collapse of the tunnel under construction at the NHPC Teesta Stage VI Hydropower Project in Samardung on Monday, trapping around 25 workers. Twenty-two workers have died, while three others remain trapped, officials said.

Krishna, a welder in his twenties from Dahu village in Jharkhand's Khunti district, was among those whose bodies were recovered during the search and rescue operation.

The young worker had spent the past few years working outside Jharkhand to support his elderly parents and younger brother.

"My brother had built a house for our family. This time, he said he would buy a motorcycle with the money earned from this job. After that, he planned to get married," Babloo said.

Krishna had returned home briefly in June, and while going back to Sikkim on July 2, he took his younger brother along. Babloo worked at the labour camp mess and delivered meals to workers at the construction site.

He said arrangements would be made to transport Krishna's body back to Jharkhand after the post-mortem examination.

Officials said four people from Jharkhand's Khunti, Hazaribag and West Singhbhum districts were working at the project. Three have been confirmed dead, while one remains missing.

The body of Jageshwar Thakur (46), an excavator operator from Talia Basti in Hazaribag district's Barhi block, was also recovered on Wednesday.

A father of two sons and a daughter, Thakur had spoken to his younger son just hours before the accident, assuring him that he would return home soon, family members said.

His nephew, Bishan Yadav, who was with him in Sikkim, told PTI that the post-mortem formalities were underway.

The body of Budaru Bikash Kandulna (40), another resident of Dahu village in Khunti district, has also been recovered.

The families of the deceased have demanded adequate compensation and government employment for the next of kin.

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Chief Minister Hemant Soren on Wednesday urged his Sikkim counterpart Prem Singh Tamang to ensure all possible assistance to workers from Jharkhand affected by the tragedy.