Dhanbad mine mishap toll mounts to 50

Mumbai: The number of people killed in the Dhanbad coalmine explosion on 6 September, 2006, rose to 50 even as rescuers fished out bodies of 43 miners.

Bharat Coking Coal Limited CMD Partho S Bhattacharya said 50 people were feared dead in the accident at Bhatdih mine. He said bodies of 43 miners have been brought out of the mine and 25 of them have been handed over to the next of kin after autopsy.

Extensive arrangements have been made for providing relief to the affected families. The Union government has announced compensation of Rs3 lakh each for families of the dead. BCCL, he said, has already started distributing compensation and letters of employment to the next of kin of the dead miners.

Meanwhile, union minister for coal, Shibu Soren has ordered an inquiry into the accident. Soren who rushed to the accident site from Delhi, announced the constitution of an inquiry committee headed by the chairman and managing director, Central Mine Planning and Design Institute Limited (CMPDIL) to go into the lapses, and a labour department probe to go into the accident.

Twenty rescue teams from BCCL and other Coal India subsidiaries, Eastern Coalfields Ltd and Central Coalfields Ltd were manning rescue operations.

The miners were trapped inside Nagda colliery of BCCL at Bhatdhi on September six after an explosion. Officials said a majority had died due to carbon monoxide poisoning following the blast. A total of 57 miners were inside at the time of the accident, but some managed to escape.He put said efforts were on to bring to the surface the remaining bodies.

The CPI (M), meanwhile, has demanded action against the coal company officials responsible for violation of safety rules, which led to the mishap. "The management of the Bharat Coking Coal Ltd is responsible for a gross violation of safety rules. Though the mine was known to be gaseous, the local officials failed to take precautionary steps provided in the mines safety regulation", the party said in a statement. It said the pressure of the gas became extremely high which led to the explosion and trapping of miners who died instantly.