Water sourced from coal mines is potentially valuable for much more than just domestic use. Beyond direct supply, several innovative projects are in development. In 2019, Western Coalfields Ltd (WCL) pioneered a plant producing ‘Coal Neer’ — a bottled drinking water brand — near Nagpur, providing purified water to villagers and creating an income source for women’s self-help groups (SHGs). Similarly, the Atal Community Innovation Centre (ACIC) at IIT-ISM in Dhanbad is working on deploying water ATMs that will treat mine water at multiple levels to provide clean drinking water to the public at a nominal cost.“We have piloted a model for pure drinking water (PARAM JAL) incubated at the ACIC IIT (ISM) Foundation. We’ve already set up a 24X7 coin/UPI water-vending ATM, where discharged mine water is being treated to provide drinking water to people at a nominal cost of Rs 10 for 10 litres. Along with Dhanbad Municipal Corporation (DMC), we are now working to set up these ATMs in five more places under the DMFT scheme,” said Akansha Sinha, CEO of ACIC.The use of mine voids is not limited to potable water. These are also emerging as a major source of livelihood. Studies by the College of Fisheries at Birsa Agricultural University in Ranchi have shown that abandoned opencast pits in Jharkhand can be transformed into fish farms. This is being achieved through targeted interventions — such as adding organic manure and fertilisers — to manage water quality and deployment of innovative aeration systems.Sashikar Mahto (38), secretary of Kuju Fisheries Cooperative Society in Ramgarh’s Kuju region, has emerged as a poster boy for mine-water fishing. Today, he leads a network of close to 70 local youths engaged in fisheries in CCL’s abandoned Ara mine numbers 8 and 13 in Kuju, with the local administration lending a helping hand.“While we began on our own a decade back, the local administration gave it a push through some funding two years ago. Today, a total of 22 (fisheries) cages have been set up that yield 50-60 tonnes of fish annually,” he said.Shambhu Prasad Yadav, deputy director of the state fisheries department, said, “Fish rearing is being done across 28 abandoned coal and stone pits across 12 districts of Jharkhand through 771 cages. Average production of fish from each cage is about three tonnes per annum.”
