Shillong, Jun 10: Chief Minister, Conrad Sangma on Thursday informed that the State government has written to the Defence Ministry to provide navy divers to try and rescue the five trapped miners in a flooded coal mine at Umpleng village, East Jaintia Hills district.
“We are going for all options. Obviously it is the responsibility of the government that we do all the steps and all measures to try and save lives,†the Chief Minister said.
The five migrant miners, including four from Assam and one from Tripura, have been trapped inside a 500-feet coal mine since May 30 after the abandoned pit got flooded following a dynamite explosion.
Police have arrested Shining Langstang, the current owner of the illegal coal mine and booked him for violating the National Green Tribunal (NGT) order banning unscientific mining and transportation of coal.
The former owner of the mine, K. Chyrmang, who was detained and is currently in quarantine after he tested positive for COVID-19 infection, while one Nizam Uddin, the manager of the illegal coal mine is absconded following the incident, even as the Meghalaya police have issued a lookout notice for him.
