Early morning near St Columba's College at Hazaribagh it is a common sight to find group of men with cycle eating their breakfast. The breakfast is normally prepared at there home in around 1 am. All it would contain is some rotis, some onion pieces and some potato bhujiya. This is something they gorge upon after 3 to four hours of arduous journey carrying around 2 tonnes of coal in their cycle. All this effort fetches them around 100 to 150 rupeee.
This coal is high in demand for domestic consumption as most of the household in Hazaribagh still prefer (rather can afford) coal as the fuel. Almost all the dhabas also use coal to prepare the local cuisines and delights. Definitely , illegal mining, carrying coal on cycle for the distance of 30 to 40 km is one of the livelihoods means and profession being carried from generation to generation since coal was discovered in this mineral rich area.
Illegal coal mining is rampant since time immemorial. Definitely a loss to Treasury , what it serves to local people is beyond imagination. The supply is regular, the cost is less and people can ensure they can make there food. Mining is mostly done from small mines around Hazaribagh and Bokaro. Kujju, Charhi, Argada, Rajrappa are the few places where mining is done and transported majorly by these cycle wallahs.There are some mines which are abandoned as history of mining is more than 200 years old in this area. Collection of coal is usually done by contractors and the coal-loaders are last in this chain.They report to the site at around 1 am and loading takes around one hour.After loading they refresh themselves with some tea available at the site and start the journey. Coal is usually transported to Hazaribagh via two routes, one through Ramgarh road and the other via Barkagaon. The route via Barkagaon is preferred as the vehicle movement is less and leads to lesser accidents. One cycle loads around 2 tonnes or 10 to 12 sack of coal.
This coal is high in demand for domestic consumption as most of the household in Hazaribagh still prefer (rather can afford) coal as the fuel. Almost all the dhabas also use coal to prepare the local cuisines and delights. Definitely , illegal mining, carrying coal on cycle for the distance of 30 to 40 km is one of the livelihoods means and profession being carried from generation to generation since coal was discovered in this mineral rich area.
This time at home, I had a chance to talk to these carriers and a long conversation, made me realize a few things I had not given notice to. They were group of four cycle wallahs. Each looking exhausted but confident of there work. One of them had played district level soccer. His well built legs said it all. दस साल पहले इसी जगह पे फूटबाल खेले हैं . अब यहाँ कोयला बेचते हैं. He was mentioning the St Columbas football ground which till date host awesome football matches around the monsoon season which covers almost all the tehsils and villages of Hazaribagh.
I also enquired why do they chose Hazaribagh as a market. I had realised this was a stupid question as Ranchi would be more far and thats what was the reply. However on weekends they do travel to Ranchi where the same amount of load fetches them around Rs 300. The journey takes around 9 hours.
I closed the conversation with टाइम पास कैसे करते हैं ? पास में महुआ ताड़ी वाली बैठती है भैया वहीँ पे थोडा बहुत . ...
(photo courtesy : Ajaa Sharma)
(photo courtesy : Ajaa Sharma)
Have seen them since childhood and always wondered about their stamina. It is a vary laborious work but also inevitable until another decent source of employment is available to deal with hunger and sustenance.
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