Jharia Underground Coal Fire, Dhanbad

About Jharia Underground Coal Fire, Dhanbad

The Jharia coal fire started in 1916 when spontaneous combustion ignited exposed coal seams in abandoned mine workings. Over a century later, the fire continues to advance through the coking coal seams of the Jharia coalfield — one of India's most valuable geological assets, as Jharia coal is India's only source of prime coking coal for steel production. The fire's advance has already consumed over 37 million tonnes of irreplaceable coking coal. The surface manifestation of the underground fire is haunting. In the active zones, the ground is hot underfoot, cracks and subsidence create an unstable landscape, and smoke vents emit sulphurous gases that hang in the air. At night — and particularly in the cool November–February period when temperature differentials are greatest — the glowing fissures and smoke rising from multiple points across a dark landscape create an image of geological apocalypse that has attracted photographers and documentary filmmakers from around the world. Hundreds of thousands of people live in the active fire zones — the communities of Jharia have been the subject of India's largest mine-fire displacement programme for decades, with relocation schemes moving families from the most dangerous areas to Belgaria township while the fires continue below their neighbours' homes. The human dimension of Jharia is inseparable from the geological spectacle: it is simultaneously a dramatic natural phenomenon and an ongoing crisis of vulnerable communities. Visiting Jharia requires responsible conduct. The active fire zones are genuinely hazardous — sudden ground subsidence has caused fatalities — and visitors must stay on established roads and avoid walking on cracked or steaming ground. The recommended approach is by vehicle with a local guide who knows which areas are accessible and which are not. The experience is most dramatic at night and in winter when the fire's surface signs are most visible.