Latest news with #Duhan
Time of India
2 days ago
- Business
- Time of India
SECL embraces state-of-the-art underground mining for greener coal extraction
Bilaspur: With the employment of state-of-the-art technologies, underground mining is going to be the future of coal mining in the country as the method causes less degradation to the environment. Realising the potential and benefits of underground mining, South Eastern Coalfields Limited (SECL), a subsidiary of Coal India Limited, is focusing on underground mining by using modern and safe technologies. "Be it in SECL or the entire coal industry, underground mining is considered an environment-friendly mining method. With the use of state-of-the-art technology, mass production technology and continuous miners, the production increases in an environment-friendly manner by simultaneously ensuring safety," said SECL Chairman-cum-Managing Director (CMD) Harish Duhan. As compared to open-cast mining, the underground method is safe and environmentally friendly due to the technology available to us, Duhan added. When asked if underground mining is going to be the future of mining in the country, the CMD said that mining in India started with underground mining. Due to available reserves and increasing demand, open-cast mining opted to increase production. As per the vision of Prime Minister Narendra Modi (in COP-26) to become net zero by 2070, the company is extensively working in this direction, and the stress is again on moving back to underground mining. "We have identified 56 projects wherein mass production technology will be employed in underground mining and the production capacity (referring to underground mining) will be increased to more than double by 2030," said Duhan, elaborating that according to the vision of Coal India, the company will ensure 25 percent production of coal through underground mining by 2030. "With the employment of technological advancement, the company managed to prevent mishaps during mining activities, be it underground or open cast," Duhan added. "Since we are engaged in underground mining, surface degradation is very little," said Area General Manager (AGM) of SECL Baikunthpur area Bidya Nath Jha. "Although the company is not doing surface degradation, SECL carries out plantation drives on the surface area of underground mining to maintain ecological balance," Jha added. The AGM further explained that keeping ecological imbalance in mind, underground mining is the future because the coal reserve on the upper surface of India, which is 350 billion tons, is upto a depth of 1200 meters. As per the exploration, underground mining with the employment of modern technologies is the only option. As per the availability in the future, Artificial Intelligence and robotics will also be applied in underground mining, and the future of underground mining is very bright. "Our entire team is engaged in mission and vision underground so that ecological disturbance could be reduced," Jha said. Speaking about the safety measures being followed in underground mining, Jha said that with the advancement of technologies, the rate of mishaps decreased significantly as compared to pre- and post-nationalisation. Churcha mines are the deepest mines of India, ranging from 150 meters to 450 meters. " From the past to the present, innovative ideas are being used in these mines. These mines have been operational since 1962. Trained supervisors, safety officers, internal safety organisations, and others closely monitor compliance with safety protocols to prevent any mishap. Moreover, we comply with the hundred per cent guidelines of the Director General of Mines Safety (DGMS). Moreover, the team also follows standard operating procedures as well as the code of practice during work. Multiple safety committees ensure inspection and compliance on a regular basis," he said. "Earlier, loading was carried out manually and blasting techniques were used, but now, we are using green mining technologies for mining, loading and transportation," Jha added. Shedding details about the safety protocols being followed in Churcha mines, Safety Officer Churcha Mines M R Mandavi said that roof bolts are being used for support purposes and to ensure strata monitoring through systems available with us. With the use of technological advancements, accidents declined significantly because no workers remain on the face during mining. "Continuous Miners are equipped with methane sensors and gas detectors along with a tel-monitoring system to detect gases. We have our own communication system to establish contact with each other and pass messages," Mandavi said.
India Gazette
2 days ago
- Business
- India Gazette
SECL embraces state-of-the-art underground mining for greener coal extraction
Bilaspur (Chhattisgarh) [India], June 13 (ANI): With the employment of state-of-the-art technologies, underground mining is going to be the future of coal mining in the country as the method causes less degradation to the environment. Realising the potential and benefits of underground mining, South Eastern Coalfields Limited (SECL), a subsidiary of Coal India Limited, is focusing on underground mining by using modern and safe technologies. 'Be it in SECL or the entire coal industry, underground mining is considered an environment-friendly mining method. With the use of state-of-the-art technology, mass production technology and continuous miners, the production increases in an environment-friendly manner by simultaneously ensuring safety,' said SECL Chairman-cum-Managing Director (CMD) Harish Duhan. As compared to open-cast mining, the underground method is safe and environmentally friendly due to the technology available to us, Duhan added. When asked if underground mining is going to be the future of mining in the country, the CMD said that mining in India started with underground mining. Due to available reserves and increasing demand, open-cast mining opted to increase production. As per the vision of Prime Minister Narendra Modi (in COP-26) to become net zero by 2070, the company is extensively working in this direction, and the stress is again on moving back to underground mining. 'We have identified 56 projects wherein mass production technology will be employed in underground mining and the production capacity (referring to underground mining) will be increased to more than double by 2030,' said Duhan, elaborating that according to the vision of Coal India, the company will ensure 25 percent production of coal through underground mining by 2030. 'With the employment of technological advancement, the company managed to prevent mishaps during mining activities, be it underground or open cast,' Duhan added. 'Since we are engaged in underground mining, surface degradation is very little,' said Area General Manager (AGM) of SECL Baikunthpur area Bidya Nath Jha. 'Although the company is not doing surface degradation, SECL carries out plantation drives on the surface area of underground mining to maintain ecological balance,' Jha added. The AGM further explained that keeping ecological imbalance in mind, underground mining is the future because the coal reserve on the upper surface of India, which is 350 billion tons, is upto a depth of 1200 meters. As per the exploration, underground mining with the employment of modern technologies is the only option. As per the availability in the future, Artificial Intelligence and robotics will also be applied in underground mining, and the future of underground mining is very bright. 'Our entire team is engaged in mission and vision underground so that ecological disturbance could be reduced,' Jha said. Speaking about the safety measures being followed in underground mining, Jha said that with the advancement of technologies, the rate of mishaps decreased significantly as compared to pre- and post-nationalisation. Churcha mines are the deepest mines of India, ranging from 150 meters to 450 meters. ' From the past to the present, innovative ideas are being used in these mines. These mines have been operational since 1962. Trained supervisors, safety officers, internal safety organisations, and others closely monitor compliance with safety protocols to prevent any mishap. Moreover, we comply with the hundred per cent guidelines of the Director General of Mines Safety (DGMS). Moreover, the team also follows standard operating procedures as well as the code of practice during work. Multiple safety committees ensure inspection and compliance on a regular basis,' he said. 'Earlier, loading was carried out manually and blasting techniques were used, but now, we are using green mining technologies for mining, loading and transportation,' Jha added. Shedding details about the safety protocols being followed in Churcha mines, Safety Officer Churcha Mines M R Mandavi said that roof bolts are being used for support purposes and to ensure strata monitoring through systems available with us. With the use of technological advancements, accidents declined significantly because no workers remain on the face during mining. 'Continuous Miners are equipped with methane sensors and gas detectors along with a tel-monitoring system to detect gases. We have our own communication system to establish contact with each other and pass messages,' Mandavi said. (ANI)
The Star
27-05-2025
- Sport
- The Star
Bulls, Sharks, Stormers must win URC quarter-finals after Champions Cup no show
South African teams are under pressure to perform in the United Rugby Championship (URC) quarter-finals this weekend after being conspicuously absent from the play-offs of the Challenge and Champion Cups. The finals of those competitions were held over the weekend in Cardiff, with Bath and Bordeaux victorious. But the Bulls, Sharks, Lions and Stormers fell by the wayside some time as they piled their eggs into the URC basket. South Africa's lack of focus on the European Cup competitions that run concurrently with the URC has not gone unnoticed in European rugby circles. The Champions Cup is huge in Europe and some French critics have accused South Africa of disrespecting its history, and questioned whether South Africa should have a place at the table. South African administrators have been embarrassed by the non-performance and this was summed up by a remark by SA Rugby CEO Ruan Oberholzer in Cardiff. When asked about the launch of the World Club Cup, which will be held every four years for the teams that make the Champions Cup plus the top teams from Super Rugby and Japan, Oberholzer said: 'Maybe now South African teams will take the Champions Cup seriously.' This brings us to the matter at hand. Having ignored the Champions Cup, the Bulls, Sharks and Stormers can't flop in the URC. There is no reason to think this will happen. The Bulls finished second on the points table and host Edinburgh on Saturday at 1.30pm. The Sharks ended third and host Munster in Durban at 6.30pm, while the Stormers were fifth and travel to Glasgow. They kick-off proceedings on Friday night in Scotland at 8.30pm. The Bulls, riding a six-match winning streak in the URC, have racked up a remarkable 70 tries while conceding 44. Across the entire 16-team tournament, only Glasgow and Leinster boast a better tries for and against ratio. But they need to be careful about Edinburgh, Sean Everitt's side. Not only did they beat the Bulls fairly recently in the Challenge Cup but they are building nicely since getting back several Scottish internationals. In their last match, they smashed a handy Ulster team 47-17 to claim their place in the URC top eight. Edinburgh also welcome Duhan van der Merwe back from injury for their trip to Pretoria. The powerfully built wing is Scotland's most prolific try scorer. Of course, the Bulls will hope their formidable pack — which includes Duhan's elder brother Akker — prevent Duhan from getting the ball. The Stormers have also scored plenty of tries (66) in their 18 URC matches, but the important thing to consider is that most of those tries have come in the second half of the URC. The Cape team had a poor start to the competition but in recent months opened the accelerator thanks to returning playmakers such as Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu, Damian Willemse and Manie Libbok.
The Citizen
19-05-2025
- Sport
- The Citizen
Duhan van der Merwe back to face Bulls?
Edinburgh coach Sean Everitt hopes winger Duhan van der Merwe will be fit for their Vodacom United Rugby Championship (URC) quarter-final against the Vodacom Bulls at Loftus on May 31. The 29-year-old South African has been sidelined since March 28, since suffering an ankle injury, but was still included in the British & Irish Lions squad named on May 8 for their tour of Australia. 'He's running and he's doing really well,' Everitt said after Edinburgh's 47-17 win against Ulster, which booked their place in the top eight after Cardiff lost to the Stormers in Cape Town. 'So we're definitely hoping that we have Duhan for the quarter-final.' ALSO: I'm going to work on my speed – Duhan Everitt added that winger Darcy Graham, a surprise omission from the Lions squad who scored a hat trick against Ulster, overcame a heel injury. 'This week he was feeling much better, and you could see it in his performance. He's just got to keep on performing and make it really difficult for the Lions to leave him out should injuries occur.' URC QUARTER-FINALS: Stormers to tackle champs Edinburgh will take a few days off, before beginning their preparations for the Bulls, who they beat 34-28 in the Challenge Cup quarter-final at Hive Stadium last month. The post Duhan back to face Bulls? appeared first on SA Rugby magazine. Breaking news at your fingertips… Follow Caxton Network News on Facebook and join our WhatsApp channel. Nuus wat saakmaak. Volg Caxton Netwerk-nuus op Facebook en sluit aan by ons WhatsApp-kanaal.
The Independent
18-02-2025
- Sport
- The Independent
Jamie Ritchie: Scotland don't feel like underdogs ahead of England clash
Jamie Ritchie insisted Scotland are paying no attention to the fact they have been classed as underdogs for Saturday's Guinness Six Nations showdown with England despite their recent dominance of the Calcutta Cup. The Scots have won each of their last four meetings with the Auld Enemy and have lost only one of the last seven. But England, who last triumphed in 2020, are red-hot favourites across the board with bookmakers to make home advantage count at the Allianz Stadium, while Gregor Townsend's side are a whopping 3/1 to claim the silverware for the fifth year running. 'No, to be honest,' said back-rower Ritchie when asked if he was surprised by his side being written off by the bookies. 'I think with most Six Nations games, people like the favourites to be the home team. They've just come off the back of a big win (against France), we're off the back of a loss (against Ireland). 'The bookies will make their decisions based on that, I'm sure. But we're under no illusions about the ability that we have. We know how well we've performed against England in the past, but it's about getting it right on Saturday. 'We never talk about being underdogs in games that we're playing in. It's not something that we ever speak about, or it's certainly never in my mindset. 'Obviously, we've had a pretty good run against them in the last few years. It's a game that requires no external motivation for us. We're under no illusions as to the challenge that's facing us, but we'll be up for it definitely.' Ritchie was captain when Scotland claimed the Calcutta Cup on their last visit to Twickenham two years ago after two stunning tries from Duhan van der Merwe helped secure a 29-23 victory for the visitors. 'It was a real special game to be a part of,' he said. 'There were some big moments in that game which make it really memorable. Obviously, Duhan's try and then the great team try we scored at the end to win it, which was also Duhan's try, wasn't it? 'And then defending our line really well at the end when they had a chance to win it, these are things that made it a really special memory. And then obviously the icing on the top was getting to lift the Calcutta Cup.' Ritchie was speaking from Scotland's warm-weather training base in Spain for the first time since his impending transfer from Edinburgh to French Top 14 side Perpignan this summer was announced earlier this month. 'It was a massive decision for me, one that my wife and I spent a lot of time mulling over,' said the 28-year-old. 'Obviously, I've loved my time at Edinburgh. I arrived at Edinburgh when I was 17 years old, my whole career and adult life has been spent at the club. 'But if I had decided not to leave now, I think I never would have. I probably would have regretted it if I had never challenged myself in a different club, in a different league, so that was part of the decision. 'Part of it was about experience for myself and my family, getting to live abroad and all the things that come along with that. 'Even when you're younger and talking about the future of your career, it's always something you speak about because it's quite a common thing in rugby to move about a bit, isn't it? So something like playing in France for me was always something I thought I'd potentially do. 'Whether that had been early in my career or later, I never really knew, but it's something I thought would be an exciting challenge. When the opportunity arose, it was something I was really interested in and it made for a very difficult decision.'
