India plans to remove 400,000 people from burning coalfields
Dozens of giant underground coal fires have been burning in the Indian state of Jharkhand for almost 100 years, according to a BBC News report. Attempts at extinguishing the fires have so far been unsuccessful. Now, the Indian government wants to move in and put out the fires with water and chemicals, and subsequently remove the coal. The problem is that some 400,000 people live on the coalfields – the desperately poor that survive by scavenging for coal. It is a hot, dirty and dangerous place where living conditions are beyond Dickensian, as exemplified in the town of Jharia. The…
