Documentary: COAL MINING IN INDIA | BLACK DIAMOND | DIRTY JOB | MINERS LIFE | REVEALED

3 years ago
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Documentary: COAL MINING IN INDIA | BLACK DIAMOND | DIRTY JOB | MINERS LIFE | REVEALED
Video link: https://youtu.be/3ra7LBN2aJE
Wonderful Music Source: Bensound.com

Disclaimer: All footage in this documentary is purely for educational and knowledge-sharing purposes focusing on the great jobs performed by our coal miners.

Script, Narration & Directed by Krishna Yoganarasimha

Transcript:
Black diamond or coal is the bad boy of nature, which in its crude form has helped humanity since the age of industrialization. It's been more than 100 years that humanity has mined coal for various developments and, of course, improved our way of living on many fronts. It is also the reason for 25% of total global greenhouse gas emissions.

While the UN and Paris agreement is working closely with all nations to strive and reduce the consumption of coal by 50%, it is still mined extensively in China, India, Australia, Indonesia, and other countries.

Curiosity to learn every day and experiencing it as I go has always led me towards exploration. I am Krishna, and today, I will introduce you to the life of a coal miner in the world of Black Diamond under our feet.

Dark, Stuffy, Sweaty, and lonely - these are the first feelings that take over our minds when we slide down a coal mine. I recently had an opportunity to visit a coal mine in India. For security reasons, I will refrain from naming the location but this should not let you down. The world below is mindblowing and is entirely different from what we experience above.

The buzzing portico filled with workers as they prepare themselves to get ready and to start their day. Every miner's lifeline under the crust is a cap lamp (a heavy-duty torch with a lifeline of 8 hours before it requires a recharge), A water bottle, a miner's boots, and a heart of a warrior. A miner's life is not less than a battle in the dark world down below. The noisy and wet lift took me to a depth of 160 ft before the long walk begins. It is rough out there and dark. Some mines are well lit and ventilated, but not all. I accompanied a miner named Raju (Name changed). We started our walk with our cap lamp brightly lit to view ~400ft from where we stood. The mine is equipped with trolley tracks to transport the coal from the blast site.

Walking down the dark path, I listened to the stories of how brotherhood is maintained. Let me be frank; down there, there is no communications network for us to access the internet and connect to our social world. The importance primarily is given to the basic needs like light for sight, air to breathe, and water to drink. Along the way, we came across a lot of underwater streams usually exploited via borewells from above. During the mining process, these streams get contaminated and are not readily drinkable, hence the water bottles.

Life down below is not an easy one. The humidity is always at its peak, draining your energy, the air you breathe contains coal dust, and the loneliness affecting the minds is for sure a war every time a miner sets his foot. They have no chance to see daylight until they step out of the mine at the end of their work shift. It is without question one of the gruesome dirty jobs with fewer benefits. In a typical work shift, a coal miner spends around 7 to 8 hours with regular rest as it is hard to work efficiently under unforgiving working conditions.

You may ask, is brotherhood necessary?
Many things can go wrong when working in the mine, and they change lives in a fraction of a second. The roof may collapse, there may be loss of breathing air, the cap lamps may switch off without warning, dealing with explosives in the mine requires skill and integrity. There is no discrimination in age group, every person is the same, and they all look after each other. This behavior also reflects when they end the day and reach the surface.

There are times, miners work during the day and come out during the night. They do not have access to sunlight for a few weeks at a stretch. The coal dust from the mine and near the blast site is super fine and can cause breathing/lung problems with constant exposure.
Some values that every miner imbibes:
Motivating self and the community is imperative.
Coal fires underground are always a risk. Being alert and cautious is a must at every second that they spend in the mine.
Integrity is a quality that every miner lives with when working in the mine.
I have learned a lot from this exploration, and the gratitude towards the coal miners has immensely increased. I hope this journey with me was a rich experience, and I will look forward to sharing more in my upcoming videos. If you like this video, do subscribe, and let's share experiences. Sayonara.

Quote: "Miners are the real black diamonds in the dark."

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