Bodies of 2 Persons Recovered from Rat-Hole Mine in Tinsukia After 14 Days | Guwahati News - Times of India

Source: The Times of India

Dibrugarh: After a gruelling 14-day search operation, the bodies of the remaining two illegal coal miners who were trapped inside a rat-hole mine in Patkai Hills of Tinsukia district were recovered on Saturday evening. The deceased were identified as John Nongrum (39) and Phiniellin Umbah (24), both residents of Ri Bhoi district in Meghalaya. Their bodies were retrieved from the mountain of rubble with the help of excavators by the NDRF, SDRF and local rescue workers.

Confirming the recovery of the bodies, SP (Tinsukia) Abhijit Gurav said, "The family members of the two coal miners have been informed.They are arriving from Meghalaya to take the bodies. The post-mortem exam was conducted at the Tinsukia Civil Hospital."

Nongrum and Umbah, along with another miner, Dawa Sherpa of Nepal were trapped on May 26 when the mine caved after a landslide. The incident took place at the Tikok West mining site, located between Bargolai and Namdang, under the Tikok colliery in the Patkai Hills. The body of Dawa Sherpa was recovered on June 1. The difficult terrain and inclement weather conditions had posed difficulties in the search operation.

The death of the coal miners has once again brought to the fore the dire working conditions in the illegal rat-hole mines. These mines lack proper safety measures, forcing the miners to work in unsafe environments without protective gear. The miners are often exposed to hazardous conditions, making them vulnerable to accidents and injuries.

Rat-hole mining, which is a crude and dangerous method of extracting coal, was banned by NGT in 2014. However, it continues unabated in the Ledo-Margherita coal belt of the Tinsukia district.