Shillong: The death toll in the dynamite explosion at the Mynsyngat-Thangsko area of East Jaintia Hills has risen to 28. Eight persons have been injured in the incident.
This was confirmed by the Meghalaya State Disaster Management Authority (MSDMA) on Monday.
In an official statement today, the MSDMA stated that search and rescue operations have been formally called off for today at 5 pm.
Meghalaya Chief Minister Conrad K. Sangma, earlier today said the State government would constitute a judicial inquiry commission to investigate the blast in the illegal rat-hole coal mine.
Meanwhile, the Meghalaya High Court came down strongly on the state machinery over its inability to stop illegal rat-hole coal mining in East Jaintia Hills district, calling the situation “distressing” and warning that responsibility would be fixed if lapses continued.
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The remarks were made by a Division Bench of Justices H.S. Thangkhiew and W. Diengdoh while hearing matters linked to the February 5 explosion at an illegal coal mine in Thangsko area of Mynsngat village, an incident that left 27 people dead and exposed the scale of unlawful mining operations in the district.
Deputy Commissioner Manish Kumar and Superintendent of Police Vikash Kumar appeared before the court in connection with the case.
A status report submitted by the district administration cited manpower shortages but confirmed that a criminal case had been registered and two arrests made.
