JOWAI: The Indian Navy’s renewed effort on Tuesday to retrieve a body from the illegal rat-hole coal mine at Ksan in East Jaintia Hills district failed as it got dislodged from the underwater remotely-operated vehicle (ROV) as it was trying to bring it out.
At least 15 miners are believed to be trapped in the mine since December 13.
The Navy’s ROV had detected the body last Wednesday in one of several coal-bearing rat-holes that branch off from a tunnel connected to the main shaft of the mine. The ROV had found at least two tunnels linked to the main shaft at its bottom.
Official sources on Tuesday said the Navy resumed the operation at 11 am – after a two-day break. However, until around 5 pm, the ROV had managed to pull it close to the main shaft.
“But due to some obstruction, the process will take some more time to bring it to the top,” operation spokesperson R Susngi said.
Another source said, as the ROV was pulling the body it got stuck in some pipes in the mine shaft. While trying to entangle it, the body got dislodged from the ROV’s “jaws” and went missing again.
Till the time of filing of this report, Navy personnel were trying to locate the body with the help of the ROV. The body will be pulled out once it is traced.
The district deputy commissioner along with a team of doctors and forensic experts were at the site. Once the body is brought out of the mine, the inquest will be conducted. An on-the-spot post mortem could also be done, but if that is not possible then the body will be taken to Khliehriat CHC.
After detecting the body on Wednesday, the ROV had pulled it about 100 feet, but gave up the attempt as flesh was coming off it every time its clamps – referred to as ‘jaws’ — gripped it.
Medical experts had concluded that the highly decomposed body would not be able to withstand the pressure of pull on it and would “disintegrate” if attempts were made to bring it out. Following this, the district administration had tried to convince families of some of the 15 miners trapped in the mine since December 13 not to insist on getting the body out. The families, however, did not agree and wanted that the body be brought out.
Earlier, these families had failed to identify the body from the video footage that the ROV had captured. It is said to be dressed in a pair of blue jeans and a red T-shirt.
The Navy suspended the operation to retrieve the body on Sunday as it was said to be “disintegrating.”
Both the Centre and the state government had on Monday told the Supreme Court that the rescue operations would continue. The court is hearing a PIL by Advocate Aditya N Prasad on the rescue operations.
The court was also told that it was assumed that there could be other bodies ahead of the one that has been detected.
The rescue operations, which began on December 14, completed 38 days on Tuesday.
