AT LEAST 18 miners died and one was seriously injured in an explosion at an illegally operated coal mine in India’s north-eastern state of Meghalaya, police said today.

Rescue operations were continuing today as authorities feared more people could still be trapped underground after the blast, which occurred around 11am on Thursday in the East Jaintia Hills district, about 45 miles from the state capital Shillong.

State police superintendent Vikash Kumar said the explosion happened during “rat-hole” mining, a hazardous method involving narrow tunnels where workers crouch to extract coal, often using dynamite.

Rat-hole mining has been banned nationwide since 2014, but continues illegally in parts of Meghalaya.

Police believe the blast was caused by dynamite used inside the mine.

The identities of the victims and the mine’s owners are still being established.

The blast is among the deadliest mining accidents in Meghalaya in recent years and echoes a 2018 disaster in which at least 15 miners were trapped after flooding in a rat-hole mine.

Activists say illegal coal mining has continued despite a 2014 ban upheld by India’s Supreme Court, with enforcement failures contributing to repeated fatal accidents across several states.