Minor killed, four hurt in Dhanbad land subsidence

Dhanbad, Sep 8 (PTI) A 12-year-old boy died and at least four persons were injured on Tuesday, as land subsidence damaged several houses in Sijua coal mining area of Jharkhand’s Dhanbad, police said.

The minor died during the course of treatment at a government hospital in Dhanbad, Deputy SP (Law and Order) Prakash Soy told PTI.

Seven houses were damaged due to land subsidence in Sijua area of Bharat Coking Coal Ltd (BCCL), he said.

“The body has been sent for post-mortem to Shahid Nirmal Mahato Medical College. The injured are undergoing treatment at a private hospital in Sijua,” Soy said.

The local administration and BCCL officials are holding talks with the affected families, and trying to pacify irate residents who blocked a section of the Katras-Sijua road in protest against incidents of land subsidence in coal mining areas, the DSP said.

The government usually provides a compensation of Rs 2.5-3 lakh in such cases, officials said.

General Manager-BCCL Sijua Area, Nirjhar Chakraborty, said the process of immediately relocating the affected families to a safe place would be initiated.

Meanwhile, Baghmara MLA and BJP leader Shatrughan Mahato blamed “illegal” coal mining for incidents of land subsidence.

“Illegal coal mining has loosened the soil, leading to this collapse. A thorough probe should be conducted,” Mahato said.