Prime Minister Narendra Modi has been taking daily updates about a rescue operation launched in Uttarakhand to safely take out 41 labourers trapped inside an under-construction tunnel, Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami said on Saturday.

"He (Modi) assured that the Centre and the state government are working jointly for a safe rescue of all the labourers," a statement issued by the Garhwal Hiteshini Sabha quoted Dhami as saying in a video message at an event organised here to mark "Shatabdi Varsh Samaroh".

The prime minister has been taking "daily updates about the rescue operation", Dhami added.

A multi-agency operation is going on to rescue the workers trapped in the Silkyara tunnel in Uttarkashi for 13 days since a portion of the under-construction tunnel on the Char Dham route collapsed following a landslide.

The blades of the auger machine drilling through the rubble got stuck in the debris on Saturday, forcing officials to consider switching to other options that could drag on the rescue of the workers.

A landline facility has been set up at the tunnel in order to keep the workers connected with their family members, officials said.

The facility has been set up by the BSNL and a handset will be given to the workers trapped inside the tunnel.

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