Beneath the surface, death and despair in illegal Saurashtra mines

Villagers said that while there has been a reduction in the operation of these illegal mines over the past two months, this was more a function of the monsoon.

On July 16, Khakhratal village in Surendranagar in Gujarat was in mourning. Thirty-seven-year-old Devsinbhai Rojara had entered a small cubbyhole of a mine, as he did every day, to earn his daily wage. It was pouring, the monsoon was raging, the pockmarked ground was unstable. The illegal mine collapsed, and while two others managed to make it out alive, Rojara was dead.

Gujarat government records show that 13 labourers have died working in illegal mines in Surendranagar district this year. (HT Photo)