Shillong: Meghalaya Police have arrested two mine owners in connection with the illegal rat-hole coal mine explosion in East Jaintia Hills district that killed at least 18 people and injured several others following a dynamite blast on Thursday, officials said.
The two accused were produced before a court in connection with the deadly explosion at the coal mine in the Mynsyngat–Thangsko area of the district, as intensive search and rescue operations continued on Friday.
East Jaintia Hills Superintendent of Police Vikash Kumar confirmed the arrests and said legal proceedings have been initiated in the case. “We are likely to make some more arrests in connection with the case,” he said.
Search and rescue operations remained underway with multiple teams deployed to recover bodies, locate any possible survivors and secure the affected mine site.
The operation involved two teams of the State Disaster Response Force (SDRF), one Special Rescue Team, and three teams of the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF). Medical arrangements were strengthened with an additional medical team from Jowai and Shillong, along with the deployment of seven ambulances from Jowai.
The Border Security Force (BSF) has also been deployed, with one Deputy Commandant, 15 personnel, two ambulances with nursing staff and two doctors stationed at the site. The Army and Air Force were kept on standby, officials said.
Taking cognisance of the situation, Cabinet Ministers Lahkmen Rymbui and Wailadmiki Shylla visited the site, while Justice (retd) B.P. Katakey, who heads the Meghalaya High Court-appointed committee on illegal coal mining, also inspected the area.
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A suo motu FIR has been lodged at Khliehriat police station in connection with the blast, and a probe has been initiated under relevant sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, the MMDR Act and the Explosives Substances Act, police said.
Notably, the National Green Tribunal imposed a ban on rat-hole coal mining and its transportation in Meghalaya in 2014 over concerns about rampant, unregulated and unsafe mining practices.
