Speakers in a rally on Labour Day held in Shangla demanded that the government increase the rescuers in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa as there are just 14 rescuers for over ten thousand coal mines in the province.
A rally was called by the Shangla Coalmine Workers Association in the Karora area of Shangla on Wednesday to mark the Labour Day. The leaders of the association, Gulab Shahpuri, Abid Yar, Ali Bash Khan, Sultan Sikndar and others, addressed the rally.
They said that the people of Shangla received dead bodies from the coalmines, and some returned crippled, but the government of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan both only took advantage of the black diamond and ignored the workers who lost their lives while generating billion of rupees for the country.
Sultan Sikandar said the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa coalmines were more dangerous for coal mining as the authorities were trying to ensure the miners’ safety and protection, and inspecting the standard of work caused fatal accidents.
Gulab Shahpuri said despite their protests, rallies, press conferences, and meetings with authorities and ministers, the dangers declared coalmines could not be stopped yet, and labourers were forced to work inside the mines.
He said, unfortunately, there were only 14 mine rescuers for over 10,000 coalmine exits in the province’s various districts who could not reach multiple mine incidents.
The speakers demanded that the government ensure miners’ safety, recruit more rescuers, and make the mine’s emergency centres functional in the province.
