‘Toxic gas’ kills two ‘illegal miners’ in abandoned Assam coal field
A father and son died from toxic fumes in an abandoned coal mine in Assam, highlighting the ongoing dangers of illegal 'rat-hole' mining. Local rights groups are calling for a thorough investigation and a crackdown on these hazardous, unregulated operations.
Why it matters
The incident underscores the persistent human cost of illegal mining activities and the failure of regulatory oversight in remote regions.
Hours after suspected methane gas killed at least 15 workers inside an NHPC hydropower project tunnel in Sikkim , a father-and-son duo died after inhaling toxic fumes in an alleged illegal coal mine in eastern Assam’s Tinsukia district.
A rights body in the district said Sagar Ali and his son Ishan Ali died after inhaling gas emitted as a consequence of the allegedly illegal coal mining in the Ledo area. The incident happened on the night of July 20.
The district police, however, said the cause of death remains to be ascertained. “The matter is under investigation,” a senior officer said on Wednesday (July 22, 2026).
The deceased were from Gaibandha village in the Jaleswar area of southwestern Assam’s Goalpara district, the Tinsukia District Committee of the International Human Rights Council (IHRC) said.
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