India, Sept. 8 -- The task of saving lives for rescue personnel at the collapsed boys' hostel in Delhi had a razor-thin margin of error-quickly plough through towering concrete slabs to reach survivors and slow down the moment a cavity is found. Every gap could potentially have a breathing person.

This is besides navigating through the cramped lanes of Satya Niketan to move in the heavy machinery required for the operation and rushing the rescued to the hospital, all the while keeping an eye on adjacent buildings whose foundation may have been weakened due to the collapse, and controlling the crowd of friends, family and political leaders gathered at the site.

After more than 27 hours since the decades-old five-storey building that hous...