After 3 years, main entrance of Barapukuria coal mine opened

Staff reporter :
Main gate of Barapukuria Coal mine at Dinajpur was opened fully at the end of three years long Covid restrictions. The announcement had been executed on Saturday midnight. Now, workers can use the main gateway on regular basis.
Due to pandemic situation the authority imposed cautionary initiatives and closed the main gate in the mine area. As a result workers of the coal mine could not move outside even could go outside after 15 days or a month. In last couple of months, workers were demanding to open main gate for 24 hours.
Jakir Hossain , President of Barapukuria trade union, said that the main gate was closed by three years. Workers were unable to move outside and could not meet with their relatives. Authority only allows them to go outside after 15 to 30 days.As result workers were demanding to ease the restrictions and open the gate in a normal basis. Finally, the authority responded on the day before yesterday.
Workers are now living their normal life, he added.
General Manager of Barapukuria Coal Mining Co. Ltd, Jafor Sadik said ” we were imposing restrictions for Covid situation.Now it is at zero level and we open the main enterance at full scale after the decision from high authority.”
Meanwhile, Barapukuria coal mine had suspended coal production on 30 July, 2022 after 90 workers of the coal mine tested positive for Covid-19 and resumed production after a closure of six days.
More than two hundred foreign workers are working in the Barapukuria coal mine, the only active mine in Bangladesh ,along with local workers where 2,000-2,200 metric tonnes of coal lifted per day on an average.