SHANGLA: Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s backward Shangla district, where about 70 per cent men are associated with coalmining profession, hosts an increasing number of orphan children, who have to step into their fathers’ shoes due to financial difficulties instead of going to school.

According to coalmine labourers association, the number of orphan children has increased as the coalminers often fall prey to mine collapse incidents and other mishaps during their work in the coalmine fields across the country.

Sarzamin, 75, whose two nephews and a grandson were killed in a recent incident at a coalmine in Darra Adamkhel, said he himself was present when the mine collapsed due to an explosion. He said that he rescued three labourers but he could not save the others.

“My two brothers also lost their lives while working in the coalmine and now a son of one of them has also died,” he said. The elderly man said there were 40 orphan children in his family, whose fathers had been killed in coalmines, adding none of them received education, and instead they followed their late fathers’ job as coalminers.

Usman Ali, a 13-year-old orphan, said his father died four years ago in a coalmine incident, who was the sole bread earner in the family. He said instead of getting admission in school he started working as a labourer.

“Education is also our right but lack of schools and financial issues force us into work. It was my wish to get education and become a teacher, but that could not be fulfilled,” the teenager lamented.

Hazrat Ali, another orphan child of a coalminer, said he had left his schooling when he was in 4th grade after his father’s death and went to Queta for coalmining job.

He said like him there were number of young orphan boys attached with coalmining.

The young boy appealed to the government to build a special school for coalminers’ children so they could get education at their doorstep. Ali said he would also enroll his younger brothers in the school if it was built.

Tariq Rauf, a social activist, said former labour and mineral development minister Bakht Baidar had promised setting up a working folks school for coalminers’ children, and its tendering process was also done, but after removal of the minister on charge of corruption the government cancelled the project. He appealed to the newly-elected MPA Shaukat Yousafzai to revive the project.

Abid Yaar, a labour rights activist, said: “If the government provides these children quality education at their doorstep then they would be able to run their houses stoves while doing honourable jobs instead of working in humiliating conditions at coalmines,” he suggested MPA Yousafzai said a working folks school would be established in the district.

Published in Dawn, September 17th, 2018