News Desk: At least 10 workers are feared dead following an explosion at an “illegal” coal mine in Meghalaya. The workers are reported to be from Assam (Illegal Coal Mine Meghalaya Explosion).
The explosion occurred on Thursday at a suspected illegal coal mine located in Thangsku village of East Jaintia Hills district, Meghalaya. According to police sources, one person was injured in the incident and several workers are feared trapped inside the mine.
Superintendent of Police Vikas Kumar told local media that the incident took place in the Thangsku area.
“Our team has confirmed that the incident occurred early this morning. However, the exact number of people inside the mine is still not known,” Kumar said.
The injured person was first taken to a primary health centre and later referred to the state capital, Shillong, for advanced medical treatment.
The police have sought the assistance of the State Disaster Response Force (SDRF) to carry out rescue operations. According to the police, the explosion is suspected to have occurred while coal extraction was underway, and allegations have been made that the mine was operating illegally.
377 Workers Died Between 2015 and 2017
According to data submitted in the Lok Sabha, a total of 377 workers lost their lives across India in accidents related to coal, mineral, and oil mining between 2015 and 2017.
Of these 377 deaths, 129 occurred in 2017 alone. In 2016, the number of deaths stood at 145, while in 2015, it was 103.
Coal mines accounted for the highest number of fatalities, with more than half of the deaths—210 workers—occurring in coal mining operations.
226 Workers Killed Between 2020 and 2024
On the other hand, between 2020 and 2024, 226 workers died while working in coal and other mines across the country.
This information was shared in the Rajya Sabha by Union Coal and Mines Minister G. Kishan Reddy. He stated that of the total 226 deaths, the highest number—53—occurred in 2020. This was followed by 51 deaths in 2021, 28 in 2022, 41 in 2023, and again 53 deaths in 2024.
In total, more than 500 workers have lost their lives while working in mines across India over the ten-year period from 2015 to 2024.
Illegal Coal Mining Syndicate Operates With ‘Blessings’ of Delhi and Dispur: Assam Jatiya Parishad Alleges
The Assam Jatiya Parishad (AJP) has described the incident in the illegal coal mine of East Jaintia Hills district, where several workers from Assam were trapped and lost their lives, as not only tragic but deeply alarming.
The party stated that despite widespread movements and protests against such illegal activities, the governments of Assam, Meghalaya, and Arunachal Pradesh, along with their respective police departments and the central government, have failed to take any concrete action. This, the party said, raises serious questions about the sincerity and accountability of these governments.
In a press release, AJP president Lurinjyoti Gogoi and general secretary Jagadish Bhuyan expressed their condolences to the families of the deceased workers. They recalled that on January 6 last year, at least nine workers died after being trapped in an illegal rat-hole mine near the 3 Kilo Assam Quarry area close to Umrangso in Dima Hasao district.
That incident occurred in a border area between Assam and Meghalaya, within Assam’s territory. The present incident, they noted, took place near the same Assam Quarry area, but across the Meghalaya border at a place called Umteh. This, they said, clearly indicates that rat-hole mining may be banned only in name, while in reality such illegal activities continue unabated, misleading the public.
Gogoi and Bhuyan further stated that the Assam Jatiya Parishad has repeatedly submitted memorandums with evidence—from the local level up to the Directors General of Police of all three states, the Chief Ministers, Governors, and even the Prime Minister of India—regarding illegal coal mining, transportation, supply networks, syndicates, and illegal financial transactions operating through rat-hole mining in areas such as Ledo, Margherita, Karbi Anglong, and Dima Hasao districts of Assam.
In January last year, the party had taken media personnel to several locations in Karbi Anglong to expose live visuals of ongoing illegal rat-hole mining before the public and the government. Although the state government subsequently formed a judicial inquiry commission headed by retired Justice Anima Hazarika, the commission has yet to submit its report.
Despite the need for legal action against several officials—including the then Deputy Commissioner and Superintendent of Police of Dima Hasao district, local police station officers-in-charge, and even the then Managing Director of the Assam Mineral Development Corporation (AMDC), Anand Natarajan—no one has been held accountable so far for the Umrangso incident.
According to the AJP leadership, illegal coal mining, transportation, supply, and illegal financial dealings are carried out with the blessings not only of Dispur, Shillong, and Itanagar, but even of the corridors of power in Delhi. Otherwise, they argued, it would be impossible for illegal mining and transportation to continue openly, for coal to be transported along national highways in Assam, and for syndicates to operate freely on Assam’s soil without the knowledge of the police, transport department, or tax authorities.
The party warned that if such mysterious silence and indifference on the part of the government, administration, and police continue, it will be impossible to curb corruption and irregularities. At the same time, the tragic chain of workers dying while risking their lives due to economic desperation will also continue unabated.
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