BURNING LIFE IN JHARIA
Since 1894, Jharia, a neighbourhood of Dhanbad (Jharkhand state, India), is well known for its coal fields thanks to high-quality prime coke coal. Nowadays, this area covers about 280 square km which makes this district as one of the most important coal fields in the whole country (in 2017, the volume of coal production in India amounts to about 567 million metric tons).
However, this black gold made locals’ life hell. The area which used to be covered by thick forests turned into Earth´s inferno over the last century. Due to the primitive technique of coal extraction, the underground coal caught fire in 1916 and soon after that, the area of about 17,32 square km was burning fatally. The underground fires never stopped despite all the efforts of the mining companies and other responsible stakeholders. Latest update reports about 70 fires in the surroundings of Jharia.
These days, there are about 100 000 families still living on health-hazard land. Men, women and mainly children are affected everyday by heavy fumes emitted by the underground fires. This fact goes hand in hand with the serious health problems like bronchitis, pneumonia or even lung cancer. Locals are also in danger of their lives because of water pollution and, last but not least, because of land subsidence caused by everywhere-present underground fire. It is proved that the average life length decreases by 10 years for people living in coal-mining areas.
Since several years, mining companies, active in Jharia region, try to relocate locals into new places, suitable for living. However, they face several issues like troubles with buying up new land in other districts and as well, resistance of families. Until 2016, they managed to move 6 500 families with target of 15 000 families till 2021. If they are successful, only 15% of impacted families will be rescued by then.
In the meantime, Jharia people continue to work every day in terrible conditions, and in addition, in order to earn the minimum for their livings, some of them are forced to even steal coal from mines and either to sell it at black market or to use it for their own cooking or heating. Despite that the authorities pay no attention to it; those locals are often injured or even killed. And many of them still being children..
However, this black gold made locals’ life hell. The area which used to be covered by thick forests turned into Earth´s inferno over the last century. Due to the primitive technique of coal extraction, the underground coal caught fire in 1916 and soon after that, the area of about 17,32 square km was burning fatally. The underground fires never stopped despite all the efforts of the mining companies and other responsible stakeholders. Latest update reports about 70 fires in the surroundings of Jharia.
These days, there are about 100 000 families still living on health-hazard land. Men, women and mainly children are affected everyday by heavy fumes emitted by the underground fires. This fact goes hand in hand with the serious health problems like bronchitis, pneumonia or even lung cancer. Locals are also in danger of their lives because of water pollution and, last but not least, because of land subsidence caused by everywhere-present underground fire. It is proved that the average life length decreases by 10 years for people living in coal-mining areas.
Since several years, mining companies, active in Jharia region, try to relocate locals into new places, suitable for living. However, they face several issues like troubles with buying up new land in other districts and as well, resistance of families. Until 2016, they managed to move 6 500 families with target of 15 000 families till 2021. If they are successful, only 15% of impacted families will be rescued by then.
In the meantime, Jharia people continue to work every day in terrible conditions, and in addition, in order to earn the minimum for their livings, some of them are forced to even steal coal from mines and either to sell it at black market or to use it for their own cooking or heating. Despite that the authorities pay no attention to it; those locals are often injured or even killed. And many of them still being children..