Coal is used to generate electricity and is also a raw material in many industries. In India, the coal business is well-known for being a significant source of certain risks and negative impacts. Coal mines have larger workforces than the nuclear and oil sectors, but the dangers of mining have a significant impact on the workforce. Additionally, mining is a highly integrated sector as all underground engineering work, including installation and maintenance, is conducted by the mine's own workforce. Firedamp and coal-dust explosions, flooding, fire, and unexpected CO2 or CH4 outbursts are only a few of the hazards that have been present in the mining industry from the very beginning. Therefore, the coal miners' lives and health are at risk. Hence, an effort is made to study the occupational health and safety factors of Indian coal miners, and the WASPAS (weighted sum model [WSM] and weighted product model [WPM]) MCDM method is used to prioritize the hazards involved.
TopIntroduction
Industrialization has raised the demand for materials all over the globe. The demand for minerals and mining has also increased proportionally. Rising demand for minerals has triggered mining exercises. To fulfill demand, mining organizations have expanded their businesses and are the most profit-making sectors all over the world. Developing countries like China and India have also advanced quickly in mining technology. Mining tasks can be classified as exploration, discovery, development, production, and reclamation. There are five types of mines (i.e., strip mining, open pit mining, mountaintop removal, dredging, high-wall mining, etc.). Minerals can also be classified broadly as metallic or non-metallic. Coal and petroleum are included in non-metallic mining. Mineral extraction can be achieved through mining, drilling, or quarrying operations. Around 70% of coal, copper, iron, and gold mines are available in around 16 countries in the world. Coal, copper, iron, and gold mines are considered as the most profitable mines. Digging operations are done to extract underground minerals like coal, copper, iron, and gold.
Chu et al. (2016) have stated that coal contributes around 27% of the world's total energy supply. Coal is found in most countries like the USA, China, India, Australia, Russia, Indonesia, South Africa, Germany, and Poland. Coal mines are unpopular due to pollution problems. To maintain sustainability in the coal supply chain and avoid pollution, all countries have established many rules and regulations in the mining sector. Still, pollution is a big question for all mining industries. According to the Global Energy Organization and IEA (International Energy Agency), coal use is expanding. Hence, demand for coal is increasing day by day. The development of the mining business is in progress all over the world to achieve higher competency, higher efficiency, and better working conditions. Automation and mechanization in the mining sector may help to reduce pollution, improve productivity, and improve safety. Obviously, the status of mining organizations contrast with each other in terms of the circumstances and scope of mining.
Therefore, the possibility of automation and mechanization in the mining sector varies from mine to mine. Mining is a dangerous and difficult workplace for workers. All the mining workers are in danger due to cave-ins, explosions, toxic air, and extreme temperatures inside mines. The mining industry employs around 1% of the global workforce, but a maximum 8% fatality rate is also observed in this sector. Automation and mechanization are somehow able to reduce accident and hazard rates, but they are still not able to completely abolish them. The collapse of mines occurs when pillars within the mine fall. It may kill 1,000 miners under these conditions. Air blasts sometimes cause flying debris, falling rocks, the closing of tunnels, the release of toxic gas, explosive gas, and may cause flooding.
Earthquakes or mining near geotechnically dangerous zones or seismic zones also collapse unpredictably and are hazardous. Moreover, the rising number of privatised or illegal mines that don't take sufficient care of the well-being of workers or miners is the main contributor to accidents and hazards. They choose the interest of company over the safety of the workers. They do not even provide protective equipment for the workers. During mining exposure to coal and debris dust, coal workers suffer from pneumonia, or dark lung illness. The residue develops in the lungs and cannot be taken out, thus causing irritation and fibrosis which are very deadly.
Coal workers' pneumoconiosis was not surely known until the 1950s. Even in many mining nations, it is not yet considered a work-related disease. Silicosis, a respiratory disease, is one of the most significant occupational diseases found among mining workers. Symptoms include breathing problems, coughing, etc. Noise-induced hearing loss is reported as the most hazardous disease found among mining workers in countries like India, China, South Africa, Poland, and so forth. Sometimes workers are not able to communicate with their family members or hear the working sounds of machines. Musculoskeletal problems are accounted for as being common among miners in Spain, Sweden, India, Iran, the USA, and Australia. Many workers (miners) suffer from joint, ligament, or muscle irritation and spinal pain during work.