Production suspended as workers contract Covid-19

The authority of Dinajpur Barapukuria Coal Mining Company Limited (BCMCL) on Saturday suspended coal extraction from the mine after 52 Chinese and local workers tested positive for Covid-19 within the three days of its trial extraction.

Of the infected, some 50 were Chinese and two were locals. The infected workers have been kept in isolation at a place in the site area. Managing Director of the coal mine, Saiful Islam Sarker confirmed.

Besides, 400 other workers of the mine, have been asked to remain in home isolation, officials said on Saturday, adding that they are waiting for the Covid test results of all the mine workers and production would resume after 10 days.

Saiful Islam Sarker said coal lifting work from the 1306 phase started on July 26 on a trial basis and till Friday, “we were able to lift 5,000 metric tonnes of coal”. However, 40,000 metric tonnes of coal are in stock, which will be used to aid power generation, said Saiful.

Meanwhile, samples of local workers in the 1041 phase have been collected and those testing negative will be allowed to join work, he added.

Coal extraction in the mine was kept suspended for three months due to the development work in the site area. They went trial extraction on Wednesday and planned to go for full-fledged extraction within this week targeting to extract around 3000 metric tonnes of coal every day.

It was supposed to resume production in the mine at the end of August. The early extraction aimed to support the nearby 525 MW Barapukuria Coal Fired Power Plant in order to keep the power generation running. The plant which usually needs around 3000- 3500 metric tonnes of coal every day, has been facing a coal crisis.

About 5,000 metric tonnes of coal had been extracted from the new Phase 1306 during the last three days. Approximately 400,000 metric tonnes of coal are reserved in the new phase. They hoped to return for normal production on the site within ten days, the MD added.

Coal extraction in mines halted on April, 30 as the coal reserve in the 1310 phase ran out. Later the phase was declared abandoned and the machines, equipment, and required tools have been transferred and set up for phase 1306 to extract coal.