Rescue operations continue for miners trapped in illegal Assam coal mine

Rescue operations continued for a fourth day on Thursday as multiple state and central agencies worked to locate miners trapped in an illegal rat-hole coal mine in Assam's Dima Hasao district. The operation resumed early after a night-long dewatering effort, with a Remotely Operated Vehicle (ROV) entering the flooded shaft. However, the ROV has not yet detected any trapped miners due to the heavily blackened water, which is complicating the search.

Four deep divers from the Navy also joined the search in the shaft, alongside teams from the Navy, Army, NDRF, SDRF, ONGC, Coal India, and local authorities. The miners were trapped inside the 3-Kilo Coal Quarry in Umrangso, located around 250 km from Guwahati, when a sudden gush of water flooded the shaft on Monday. There were around 15 workers inside the mine, and while some managed to escape, nine workers remain missing. One body was recovered on Wednesday.

To assist in the operation, Coal India deployed a heavy pressure pump from Maharashtra, which arrived at Silchar airport in Cachar district. A Mi-17 helicopter will transport the pump components to the site for assembly. Although several pumps are in operation, heavy siltation in the water is hindering their effectiveness. The rescue teams are now awaiting the arrival of more powerful submersible pumps.

The mine involved is a "complete rat-hole mine," which remains illegal despite a 2014 National Green Tribunal ban on the practice. The shaft is 310 feet deep, with multiple channels carved out using the dangerous rat-hole technique. Experts speculate that a wall breach in one of these channels may have led to the flooding, possibly due to a connection with an already flooded nearby mine or an underground reservoir.

On Wednesday, the body of one missing worker, Ganga Bahadur Srestho from Nepal's Udaypur district, was recovered 85 feet below the surface by Army divers.