IANS reported that the National Highway 33 of Jharkhand may be damaged if an ongoing underground fire further engulfs an abandoned mine of Central Coal Field Limited in Ramgarh district.

Police officer said "The fire has reached the national highway which is situated near the closed coal mine."

According to CCL authorities, the fire has spread in an area of around 3,000 square meters. The fire was detected by local residents last week in the mine near Lohagate of Kuju colliery in Ramgarh, about 70 kilometers from state capital Ranchi.

Mr TB Mitra general manager (safety) of CCL said "The rat hole was made during illegal mining and spontaneous heating of the coal caused the fire. We have started filling the void to stop spread of fire. Safety measures have been adopted."

Mr Mitra said "Coal companies are not allowed to mine around national highways. Illegal mining is the cause of the fire."

(Sourced from IANS)