Guwahati: Congress MP Gaurav Gogoi has said that he has written to Prime Minister Narendra Modi seeking a SIT probe into the mining tragedy in Assam’s Dima Hasao district.
As per the latest report, the bodies of four miners have been recovered so far.
Gogoi alleged that “illegal mining continues unchecked” due to “weak law enforcement and local complicity” in the northeastern state.
The tragedy occurred on Monday after a sudden gush of water flooded a coal quarry in Umrangsu, trapping nine workers inside.
Gogoi, who serves as the Congress’ deputy leader in the Lok Sabha, said, “As of today, rescue operations have entered their sixth day, but the fate of coal miners trapped in the illegal coal mine at Dima Hasao remains uncertain. Illegal mining continues unchecked in Assam, fuelled by weak law enforcement and local complicity.”
As of today, rescue operations have entered their sixth day, but the fate of five coal miners trapped in the illegal coal mine at Dima Hasao remains uncertain. The bodies of four miners have been recovered so far.
Illegal mining continues unchecked in Assam, fuelled by weak… pic.twitter.com/Gpy0RziFJu
— Gaurav Gogoi (@GauravGogoiAsm) January 11, 2025
He added, “I have written to the prime minister urging an urgent SIT probe to investigate this tragedy. Those responsible for this tragedy must be held accountable. Moreover, broader issues of safety, corruption, and environmental harm need to be addressed too.”
He stated that the families of the victims deserve justice and called for measures to prevent such incidents in the future.
On January 8, the body of Ganga Bahadur Shreth, a resident of Udayapur district in Nepal, was recovered from the flooded mine. The recovery efforts at the mine site continued with the retrieval of three more bodies on Saturday, bringing the total number of deceased to four.
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One of the three bodies recovered on Saturday was identified as 27-year-old Ligen Magar, a resident of Kalamati village in Dima Hasao. Efforts to identify the other two bodies are ongoing.
District officials have stated that rescue teams are working tirelessly to locate and recover the remaining trapped miners.
