A soldier, often a specialist, engaged in mining operations? that’s how a dictionary defines a miner. His work is one of the most difficult and dangerous ones in the world but not at Uranium Corporation of India Ltd’s (UCILs) Narwapahar mines, which is considered any miners? dream to work in.
Built with Russian technology and designed to produce 1,000 tonne of ore per day, the Narwapahar mine, 12 km North West of Jaduguda, is one of the most modern mines in the country.
The circular, concrete-lined main mine shaft has a diameter of seven metres. It is here that the trackless mining equipment is in use for the first time in the country. Mine development progress rates of over 300 meters per month have been achieved and the underground output per man shift is about 1.9 tonne, considered to be best in the country.
“The mine is so good that no miner from Narwapahar wants to work in Jaduguda and subsequently miners in Jaduguda love to work Narwapahar,” said UCIL spokesperson Atul Kumar Bajpai.
The Narwapahar mine is operated by a seven degree decline, with the help of which heavy equipment can be lowered to the working area without dismantling, and a vertical shaft, used for hoisting ore and movement of personnel.
The mine has facilities like a passenger carrier, drill jumbo and low-profile dump trucks. The presence of an underground service yard at 140 metres ensures the various equipment and vehicles don?t need to be taken out for servicing. Routine work like fueling, changing tires, changing lubricants, are all done underground. “Only if the equipments need special maintenance, we take them out,” said Narwapahar mine manager SK Sharma.
The introduction of drill jumbo has reduced stress on workmen and has enabled drilling for long and parallel holes. Mostly, drilling is done through hand-drill jack hammer.
The road inside the mine is wide enough to accommodate heavy equipments and vehicles easily. The high decibel equipments move through the tunnels carrying the blasted and drilled ores.
The usual uneasiness and darkness associated with a mine is not found in Narwapahar mines. There is a continuous source of fresh air being pumped in to the mine, which makes it comfortable to be in.
Well lit, the mine hardly needs the hand-held lights that the miners carry. For water the mine has drinking water available through pipes at regular intervals and even to the point mining is being carried out at.
Telephones are placed at various places in Narwapahar for communication within the mine and the control rooms outside. With provisions for underground toilets, the only thing missing at Narwapahar underground mine is a cafeteria.
Safety, being the paramount in any mine, is not taken lightly in Narwapahar. Fire fighting equipments and first aid rooms are within the mine itself. Work being highly mechanised ensures that about 350 people work in a shift in the mine.
The mining process too is mechanised. The uranium ore rocks containing the ore are transported via a conveyor belt to a crusher, which then deposits it to a lift. A conveyor belt transports lumps of uranium ore into an electronically-controlled measuring bin, which, in turn, empties the ore into a skip. The skip can carry five tonne of ore a trip, which is then lifted out from the mines to the surface. Two multi-rope friction winders control the skip and the cage.
UCIL, a public sector undertaking under the department of atomic energy, operates Jaduguda, Bhatin, Narwapahar and Turamdih underground mines in the area.