The New Indian Express ·
Minor dead, six injured as houses collapse near coal mining area in Jharkhand's Dhanbad
RANCHI: A child was killed, and at least six people were injured as land subsidence damaged several houses in the Sijua coal mining area in Dhanbad on Tuesday, police said.
According to locals, the ground suddenly caved in with a loud noise near Sijua Kali Temple, causing several houses to collapse and trapping residents under the debris.
Large cracks also appeared on the ground in surrounding areas, triggering panic among residents.
“Villagers immediately launched a rescue operation and pulled out those who were trapped under the debris,” said a local requesting anonymity. "One child died, and several others sustained injuries," he said.
Officials said that among those injured, most of them were women.
Circle Officer (CO) Girijanand Kisku said all those injured were immediately rushed to the hospital. Among them, a 12-year-old boy named Vikram Kumar Bhuiyan died during treatment.
As news spread, a large crowd gathered at the site.
Angered with the Bharat Coking Coal Ltd. (BCCL) and district administration, the crowd blocked the Sijua-Dhanbad main road and staged a protest.
Locals alleged that illegal coal mining has been going on in the area for a long time, weakening the ground.
Despite this, the affected families have not been relocated to a safer place.
Baghmara MLA Shatrughan Mahto also visited the site and met the affected families. He also held the government and BCCL responsible for the land subsidence.
The MLA said that land subsidence incidents are occurring frequently in the Baghmara area due to illegal mining. "Even though the administration and BCCL are aware of the danger in the area, there has been negligence regarding rehabilitation," he said.
Residents have called for an immediate relocation of all affected families to a safer area. They have also demanded adequate compensation and a ban on illegal coal mining in the region.
BCCL general manager of the Sijua area said land subsidence caused four houses to collapse completely, while two others developed cracks. Several people were injured and are undergoing medical treatment.
The general manager assured that the process of relocating the affected families to a safe location would begin immediately.