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Download PDF Several pieces of land in 10 villages adjacent to the Barapukuria coalmine in Dinajpur have subsided recently and the cultivable lands have now gone under water.
Sources said many pieces of land over the coalmine Phase-1101 and Phase-1103 have subsided and the monsoon rain coupled with the pumping out of water from underneath have created shallow water bodies. The mine pumps out a staggering 1,300 litres of untreated water an hour.
Sources in the Barapukuria Coalmine Company Ltd said at least 30 acres of Boro have gone underwater since the starting of the recent land sinking early May. A 200-foot stretch of road connecting six villages also went under water a few days ago.
According to the coalmine sources, around 200 acres of land in Kalupara, Balorampur and the coalmine adjacent areas are vulnerable to sinking.
Locals alleged they often have to rush out their homes in panic as quakes have become quite frequent, sometimes two to four times a day. They alleged that around 200 houses have developed cracks during the last two years in different nearby villages.
The coalmine, however, claims only seven houses were damaged due to subsiding of lands. They say that 53 houses are now vulnerable to land subsiding.
According to coalmine sources, the land sinking occurred on the surface over Phase-1101 (coal extraction completed) and Phase-1103 (extraction ongoing) due a major geological fault.
Sources said the geological fault is 1,200-1,400 feet under phases 1101 and 1103.
The coalmine officials claimed only nine acres of land have subsided due to the geological fault.
The coalmine tried to repair the 200-foot stretch of road that subsided but angry villagers drove the repairmen away saying they first want compensation for their damaged houses, lands and livelihood.
The coalmine, a project of Petrobangla, faced several land subside issues since it started coal extraction early 2006. The company officials, however, termed the issue of land subsiding “common in underground mining”.
In May 2006, around 1.2 square km area of four villages subsided.
The mine compensated a number of villagers for the damage done to their homes, lands and livelihood in 2006. However, locals claimed that the money was not enough.
Experts say that it is necessary to fill a mine phase with sand or other cheap materials when the extraction is done.
Sources in the coalmine claimed that there was no provision in the project proposal for filling up the phases after coal extraction. They say that filling up a phase is expensive and not viable economically as it would hike coal prices and which would consequently raise the price of power generated in a plant next door to the mine.
According to locals and mine sources, the villages affected are Kalupara, Gopalpara, Baidynathpur, Balarampur, Chowhati, Dhulauzal, Patigram, Mou-Pokor, Ziagari, Bash-Pokor, Shakgram, Durgapur, Rasulpur and Hamidpur.
The villages sometimes face water crisis as well, which force farmers to use the untreated water pumped out of the mine to irrigate their land. Locals claim this practice has drastically reduced their production.
MA Aziz, managing director of the coalmine, told The Daily Star that the situation is under their control and necessary measures have been taken.
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