SUBHASH MISHRA
Dhanbad, July 23: Giridih MP CP Choudhary staged a dharna at Baghmara police station on Wednesday afternoon, demanding immediate rescue operations for people feared trapped in an illegal mining mishap inside a closed underground mine of Bharat Coking Coal Limited (BCCL) in Block-2.
The affected colliery area falls under the Giridih Lok Sabha constituency represented by Choudhary. Acting on reports of the incident that occurred Tuesday evening, the MP visited the site earlier today. After finding no rescue efforts underway, he proceeded to Baghmara police station and began his protest at around 3 PM.
Also Read- Justice Tarlok Singh Chauhan sworn in as Chief Justice of Jharkhand High Court
MP Blames BCCL, Demands NDRF Intervention
Choudhary declared that he would continue his sit-in until BCCL initiated a rescue operation in the underground mine with the help of the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF). Holding the company accountable, the MP alleged negligence on the part of its management.
Locals claimed that the mishap occurred during illegal mining when the roof of the abandoned mine collapsed, reportedly trapping nearly half a dozen hired workers from a mining syndicate. However, both Dhanbad police and BCCL officials have denied the occurrence of any such incident.
Choudhary, Saryu Roy Face Public Anger
Earlier in the day, Choudhary and Jamshedpur (West) MLA and JD(U) leader Saryu Roy were met with strong protests from residents at the incident site. The locals, who were demanding an immediate rescue operation, forced both leaders to leave the spot without inspection.
Also Read- Rahul Gandhi targets PM Modi again over silence on Trump’s ceasefire claim
Speaking to the media later, Roy criticized the district administration and BCCL management, calling the incident a glaring failure of governance.
“Despite heavy CISF deployment to safeguard national assets, coal theft and illegal mining continue unabated. This is a matter of grave concern,” he remarked.
Roy further said he would raise the Baghmara illegal mining issue in the upcoming Assembly session.
