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Race against time in Assam to rescue miners, ops intensified

By, Guwahati
Jan 08, 2025 08:37 AM IST

Around 40 people entered the well-shaped mine at around 9am on Monday. The workers likely contacted a source of water which soon flooded the mine.

Anxiety mounted in a remote corner of Assam on Tuesday as army and navy personnel joined operations to rescue people trapped 300 feet under the ground in a flooded coal mine in the Dima Hasao district, marking the second day of frenetic but still-unsuccessful efforts to save the workers.

Divers use a pulley to enter the coal mine to rescue trapped miners in Umrangso, a remote area in Assam.(REUTERS)
Divers use a pulley to enter the coal mine to rescue trapped miners in Umrangso, a remote area in Assam.(REUTERS)

Confusion prevailed throughout the day as some officials suggested that nine people were trapped in the mine and others said that the number could be as high as 15. Navy divers joined the efforts, hours after personnel from the Indian Army, National Disaster Relief Force and State Disaster Relief Force spotted some helmets and slippers floating on the water.

This gave rise to speculation that some people were dead, but officials denied an earlier report from the state information department that said three bodies were spotted on the surface of the water.

The only suspicion that gathered certainty was that the mine was illegal; as a result, potentially unregulated operations and no proper stocktaking made it difficult to ascertain the exact number of people trapped.

The terrain of the remote area was stalling the rescue operations, authorities said, also strongly suggesting that the operation was an illegal one.

“Prima facie, it appears to be an illegal mine,” said chief minister Himanta Biswa Sarma, adding that one person was arrested and a case of culpable homicide not amounting to murder filed the man against who operated the mine and engaged the workers.

“Teams from the Indian Army, NDRF, SDRF reached the site early on Tuesday morning. Their divers have gone down the mine and went underneath the water, but there’s no trace yet of the workers. Some helmets and few slippers were found floating in the water,” Dima Hasao deputy commissioner Simanta Kumar Das said.

According to locals, around 40 people entered the well-shaped mine at around 9am on Monday. The workers likely contacted a source of water which soon flooded the mine. While most workers managed to escape, between nine and 15 people are believed to be stuck.

Describing the structure of the mine, rescuers at the site that there is a 300-feet-deep central pit which has rat hole tunnels branching out in different directions. Workers are likely trapped in the rat hole tunnels, the rescuers said.

Officials said that despite the use of suction machines to drain out water from the well, around 100 feet of water remained in the mine till Tuesday evening. While officials have not been able to ascertain the cause of flooding or the source of water, the 3 Kilo area is located about 5km away from the Umrangso artificial lake created by damming of the Kupili river.

A team of deep divers of Indian Navy from Visakhapatnam equipped with a remotely operated vehicle (ROV), a highly maneuverable underwater machine used for exploring ocean depths, arrived at the spot late on Tuesday afternoon to help the rescue efforts.

“The divers from the navy did an underwater recce of the mine early on Tuesday evening. We have arranged for lighting in the area so that rescue operations can continue at night as well, but it is for the navy team to decide what course to take,” said Das.

A 35-member NDRF team, led by commandant HPS Kandari, is conducting rescue operations at the site.

Army personnel have been engaged to rescue the nine labourers and a relief task force comprising specialists such as divers and sappers, equipped with essential tools, reached the site in Umrangso, a defence spokesperson said.

“Engineers task force with equipment, divers and medical teams from the Indian Army and the Assam Rifles have joined the rescue efforts,” he said.

All efforts are underway in close coordination with the civil administration to rescue the trapped people, another official said.

The district has widespread coal, limestone and granite quarrying activities, with the coal reserves of the Umrangso town leased by the state government-run Assam Mining Development Corporation.

DC Das on Monday said that the mine at 3 Kilo was leased out to a private firm by the government department but Sarma indicated it might have been illegal.

An FIR under sections 3(5) (criminal act done by several persons in furtherance of common intention) and 105 (culpable homicide not amounting to murder) of Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) and Section 21(1) of the Mines and Minerals (Development and Regulation) Act was registered at the Umrangso police station, the CM said.

“I also spoke to Union coal minister G Kishan Reddy seeking assistance for our rescue operation in Umrangsu. He has promptly issued directions to Coal India to extend full support to the Assam government in this mission. My sincere gratitude to him for his swift response and support,” Sarma said on X.

Dima Hasao superintendent of police NAME said that the arrested person, identified as Punish Nunisa, was operating the mine and engaged the trapped workers.

“A case has been registered, and an investigating officer is following the leads... The focus remains to rescue the workers,” Assam Police Special DGP Harmeet Singh, told reporters, at the site.

Earlier on Monday night, Sarma shared details of the nine men stuck inside the mine. Of them, one is from Nepal, one from West Bengal, and the remaining from Assam.

The remote location of the mine — it is about six hours away from the district headquarters in Halflong — has added to the difficulties in the rescue operation.

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