'Tunnel lacked safety exit; built on geological fault'

A tunnel which collapsed, trapping 41 workers in the Indian Himalayas this month, did not have an emergency exit and was built through a geological fault, a member of a panel of experts investigating the disaster said on Friday.

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Rescuers are still struggling to reach the construction workers 12 days after the 4.5 km (3-mile) tunnel caved in. The men, from some of India's poorest states, have been getting food, water and medicine through a pipe.

In the days that followed, the government asked a group of experts to investigate what went wrong, look into the construction of the tunnel in Uttarakhand state, and make recommendations for the future.

Preliminary findings indicated the collapse may have been caused by a geological fault, known as a "shear zone", a member of the panel told Reuters, speaking on condition of anonymity as he is not authorized to talk to the media.