Jharia mine fire: People in danger zone to be shifted at any cost, says coal secretary Sushil Kumar

Dhanbad: People living in the danger zone of underground mine fire in Jharia would have to be shifted at any cost, Union Coal Secretary Sushil Kumar said in Dhanbad on Friday. The government cannot let the people die in subsidence due to underground fire and would rehabilitate them in safe places, said Kumar who visited mine fire affected residential areas of Jharia. [caption id=“attachment_3788267” align=“alignleft” width=“380”] Representational image. Reuters[/caption] Talking to the residents of Ghanudih Basti, considered the most dangerous area of Jharia coalfield under Bharat Coking Coal Limited (BCCL), Kumar urged them to cooperate with the authorities for their proper rehabilitation. The coal secretary, who was accompanied by Jharkhand chief secretary Raj Bala Verma, also made it clear that the affected people would be rehabilitated on the basis of the 2009 survey of the area. The 2009 survey, conducted by Jharia Rehabilitation and Development Authority, had identified over 54,000 families living in the danger zone to be entitled for rehabilitation. The coal secretary also visited Jharia Vehar colony where displaced persons of mines fire area are being rehabilitated in quarters. The displaced persons complained to Kumar that they had been dumped in the quarters, without any arrangement for their source of livelihood or medical facility. The coal secretary also held a meeting with BCCL and the district administration and asked them to immediately start shifting of the people at safer places.