A team of Navy divers on Thursday pulled out a disintegrated body of a trapped miner from 370 deep feet flooded coal mine in Meghalaya's East Jaintia Hills district where 14 miners still remain trapped since December 13.
The highly decomposed body was pulled to the water surface by an underwater remotely operated vehicle (UROV) and then taken out, a senior rescue official told IANS.
The miners were trapped after water gushed into the abandoned mine located in Ksan village, about 130 km from the state capital Shillong. Only five managed to escape.
The miners' families have said that they want the bodies to be taken out as per a Supreme Court order.
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The Indian Air Force had also provided two aircraft to Meghalaya government for airlifting specialist personnel of the NDRF from Odisha for helping in the rescue operations. Union Defence Ministry has promised all help to the state government.
Coal mine accidents have been rampant in the mountainous state due to unscientific "rat hole mining" even after a National Green Tribunal imposed an interim ban in April 2014.
(With Inputs from Agencies)
