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Author: Admin | 2025-04-28
Rat-Hole mining, an illegal and hazardous method of extracting coal in India, has been in the news now and then. Of late, it was used during the Uttarakhand Tunnel Rescue Ops. This article of NEXT IAS aims to explain the intricacies of rat-hole mining and the multifaceted challenges posed by it.What is Rat-Hole Mining?Types of Rat-Hole MiningAreas of Prevalence of Rat-Hole MiningConcerns Caused by Rat-Hole MiningEnvironmental IssuesSocial and Human Rights IssuesNGT’s Ban on Rat-Hole MiningSuggested MeasuresRelated FactsWhat is Rat-Hole Mining?Rat-Hole Mining is a primitive and hazardous method of mining, which involves digging small tunnels, just large enough for a person to crawl through, to extract coal.Rate Hole refers to the narrow pits dug into the ground, which are just large enough for one person to descend and extract coal.Once the pits are dug, miners descend to the coal seams using ropes or bamboo ladders. They, then, extract coal manually using primitive tools such as shovels, pickaxes etc.Broadly, Rat-Hole Mining is of two types:Side CuttingIn this type of Rat-Hole Mining, narrow tunnels are dug on the hill slopes. Workers use this tunnel to go inside until they find the coal seam.Box CuttingIn this type of Rat-Hole Mining, first a rectangular opening is made of a size varying from 10 to 100 sqm. That opening is, then, used to dig a vertical pit upto the depth until the coal seam is found. The process, then, involves digging rat-hole-sized tunnels horizontally through which workers can extract the coal.Areas of Prevalence of Rat-Hole MiningUse of this technique of coal mining is, generally, prevalent in the Northeastern states, especially Meghalaya.Despite several attempts by authorities to regulate or ban such practices, they have been prevalent in these regions. Some of the major reasons for the prevalence of this technique are as follows:These areas are majorly hilly
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