A miner named Muhammad Yaqoob lost his life in an accident at a local coal mine in Harnai district of Balochistan on Friday.
Rescue sources stated that the workers extracted the miner’s body from the mine with their assistance and transferred it to the hospital, where the body was handed over to the heirs after necessary procedures.
The aforementioned incident marks the first accident that occurred in the coal mines of Balochistan this month. Before that, a total of 17 miners were killed in accidents that took place in March this year.
In March, 18 miners were trapped inside a coal mine in the Zardalu area of Harnai due to a gas explosion inside the mine, which left 12 miners dead.
Dozens of coal mining projects are operational in Balochistan, where thousands of workers, majority of them hailing from Balochistan have fallen victim to these accidents. Mine accidents occur in Balochistan on almost daily basis. According to officials of the Department of Minerals, 69 miners died and 29 were injured in 51 accidents in the coal mines of Mach, Dukki, Shahrag, Chamalang, and Quetta areas of Balochistan last year.
Labor unions operating in these coal mines, along with organizations working to protect the rights of workers, attribute these accidents to poor facilities and substandard materials provided to the workers. They also allege that funds for mining projects are embezzled by ministers and the federal government turns a blind eye on these issues.