National
April 11, 2021
BISHAM: The remains of the 16 coalminers were buried in their respective graveyards in Shangla district amid grief and mourning on Saturday.
The collective funeral prayers were held after their bodies were transported by the Rescue 1122 ambulances to Shangla following their recovery from Kala Chaphar area in Kohat district.
Besides PTI provincial ministers Shaukat Ali Yousufzai and Arif Ahmadzai, Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) leader Amir Muqam and officials of district administration and a large number of people attended the funeral prayers held at Shangla’s main town and headquarters, Alpuri.
Talking to the media, Shaukat Yousufzai and Arif Ahmadzai expressed profound grief over the tragic incident and assured that every help would be extended to the bereaved families.
Mass Grave Uncovered With 16 Pakistani Miners Missing Since 2011 rferl.org - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from rferl.org Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
Families of the slain miners and local political leaders stand next to their coffins in Dara Adamkhel on Friday. Photo by author
The remains of 16 coal miners abducted by unidentified assailants in the former Khyber Agency nearly a decade ago were recovered from a mass grave in the area on Friday, an official said.
On Sept 9, 2011, as they were working their routine night shift in a coal mine of the Kala Khel area in Khyber Agency, 32 workers were forcibly taken away by armed men. Of these, 16 miners managed to escape over the next months, while the other 16 remained missing.
The 32 miners belonged to the Shangla district of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.
Mon, 04, 21
The beginning of 2021 has increasingly seen accidents and deaths in coalmines and collieries in Pakistan. Only last month, two coalmines collapsed in Balochistan, home to large deposits of coal, causing many coalminers’ deaths.
The beginning of 2021 has increasingly seen accidents and deaths in coalmines and collieries in Pakistan. Only last month, two coalmines collapsed in Balochistan, home to large deposits of coal, causing many coalminers’ deaths.
In the tragic accident on March 15, seven coalminers burnt to death in a huge fire triggered by methane gas blast inside a coalmine in Harnai District, while digging about 1,500 feet deep inside the mine, and two rescuers also lost their lives. Earlier, on March 12, six workers had died in the Marwar Coalfields in Machh area following an explosion caused by the toxic methane gas. The explosion took place around 1,000 feet deep inside the mine when the mineworkers were busy digging the coal.