Engulfing apathy
several houses collapsed and many others developed cracks after over a hectare land subsided at an underground mine of Sangramgarh Coaleries of Eastern Coalfields at Samadi village in Burdwan district of West Bengal on June 18. About 500 villagers have been shifted to a different place. An 11-year-old boy was buried under rubble and could be rescued with great effort.
People accused Eastern Coalfields of removing the pillars from the underground mine and avoiding sand filling. these increase the chances of mine roof collapse. Block Development Officer Sankha Santra also accused the company of exposing the coal seams that attract people and coal mafia to extract more coal without safety measures.
Eastern Coalfields, however, put the blame on people.