Labour bodies demand cancellation of coal mines’ leases

The National Labour Council (NLC) and the Pakistan Institute of Labour Education and Research (Piler) have expressed grief and sorrow over the loss of the lives of 15 workers in a coal mine in Balochistan and demanded of the government to cancel leases of all coal mines as their allottees have failed to provide occupational safety and health facilities to workers.

In a statement issued here on Wednesday, Karamat Ali, NCL secretary, said that in the recent months a lot of workers had lost their lives in coal mines because of the non-availability of safety and rescue measures at the sites.

At least 13 miners died when they were trapped in a coal mine in the Sanjdi area near Quetta after it caved in following a gas explosion on Sunday. During the rescue operation, five volunteers went into the mine for help, but two of them also died on Monday due to the accumulation of poisonous methane gas inside the mine. Three volunteers were shifted to Quetta Civil Hospital in a critical condition.

Karamat Ali has urged the Pakistan Mineral Development Corporation (PMDC) to take over all mines in Balochistan as the current mines lease operators have done nothing for saving the lives of poor workers, who are mostly from Swat and other mountainous areas, where employment opportunities do not exist.

The provincial labour department has also failed to ensure the provision of rescue services and due to poor measures the lives of workers are constantly under threat. In a statement issued on Monday, the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan also mourned the deaths of the miners and strongly urged the new government to prioritise the need for occupational health and safety in the mining sector.