Three miners were killed and several others were injured in an accident occurred in a coal mine in Quetta on Monday.
The police confirmed the fatalities but did not elaborate. They said that three miners had lost their lives as a result of the accident whereas several others are wounded.
Much like the notorious ‘killer highways’ in Balochistan, the coal mines are also infamous for their share of accidents. There are approximately 2800 coal mines throughout Balochistan. These mines employ tens of thousands of employees who come from different parts of Balochistan and neighbouring Afghanistan in search of employment.
Rights groups advocating for the rights of the coal miners claim that these mines are underequipped and no safety measures are in place. Furthermore, the mines are operated by inexperienced staff which also leads to disastrous consequences.
In the past year, 87 miners were killed and 43 were critically injured in 65 accidents. In the past three years, 265 miners have lost their lives in such accidents.