RECENTLY, a horrific incident of terror took place in the far-off district of Dukki in Balochistan, where 21 poor miners, mostly Pakhtuns, working in the coal mines, were mercilessly slaughtered by an unknown group of armed men.

The incident created a stir at the national level, albeit for only 24 hours and then it vanished from public discourse. That is the tragedy of Balochistan. Unimaginable atrocities carried out there by the terrorists, criminals or the state agencies, don’t stay in the spotlight for long, hence, do not get the attention they deserve.

According to the FIR, on the night between Oct 10 and 11, 2024, a group of 40 to 50 armed men raided the Junaid coal mines in Dukki. During their attack, they not only massacred 21 miners but also set on fire nine engines of the mines. It is disconcerting to know that during the one-hour carnage, neither the Frontier Corps Balochistan (FC) nor the police or Baloch levies, based in nearby Dukki town, turned up to challenge the raiders.

While the police suspect the Baloch Liberation Army (BLA) for this attack, the banned group has denied it. After this terrible incident, instead of being deterred, on Nov 3, an armed group set on fire three trucks carrying coal in Dukki district. The rampage continues.

In recent years, Dukki district has been witnessing an increase in cases of extortion and terrorism. There were, reportedly, two armed attacks on the Dukki mines in 2022, two in 2023 and 12 so far in 2024. Also, the number of miners killed in these attacks has shot up to 26 this year as against two in 2023.

There are many reasons for the armed attacks on these mines. It is generally believed that the most common motive for these attacks is the demand of extortion or protection money by armed groups, from the mine owners. When they fail to pay it, the poor miners are abducted or killed to put pressure on the owners. The phenomenon is, however, not confined to one district alone. Similar incidents of extortion and killings have also been reported in Machh, Quetta, Bolan, Harnai and other places in Balochistan.

Cases of extortion and terrorism in Dukki district, Balochistan, have been increasing.

In fact, extortion from the mines is one of the main sources of funding of BLA and other militant groups in the province, which they are reported to claim on a fixed rate on per ton of coal extracted. As per one estimate, BLA earns up to Rs5 billion per year from the mines in the entire province. Interestingly, such is the impunity of militant organisations that at times, the mine owners are asked to deposit the extorted amount in specific bank accounts in Quetta or elsewhere, and there is no action by the law-enforcement agencies!

A reflection of mine owners’ dissatisfaction with the prevailing insecurity and extortion was the huge protest in January this year, blocking the road connecting Loralai with Punjab, demanding the arrest of the extortionists as well as the killers in such cases.

As far as responsibility for security of mines in Dukki is concerned, there is a bit of duality. Acco­r­­ding to the law, the security of the mines and in­­v­estigation of cases of all armed attacks on the mines is the responsibility of the police. However, according to reports, the mine owners, through a local written arrangement with the paramilitary FC, have made the security of the mines the exclusive domain of the FC.

For instance, an HRCP re­­port on Balochistan, issued in 2022, states: “mine owners and union representatives were particularly bitter about the role of the FC, which they claim collects millions of rupees in the name of security but have failed to maintain peace in the area”.

Under these circumstances, the police role in Dukki district is confined to investigating cases of armed attacks and extortion in the mines. Interestingly, Dukki was declared a district in 2017 and the then chief minister approved a numerical strength of 425 police personnel for the district. The Balochistan finance department, however, sanctioned only four posts for the district police — one SP, two DSPs and one clerk, claiming non-availability of funds for the rest of the posts. No posts were sanctioned for manning the two police stations at all!

The IG Police was asked to manage the district by transferring police officers from other districts on a temporary basis. What is even more ridiculous is that this ‘temporary’ arrangement has been ongoing for the last seven years. The protection of lives of miners and the extortion from mine owners seems to be low on the priority list for the allocation of funds to police in Balochistan.

As the way forward, a four-dimensional approach is suggested.

One, a joint security committee should be set up at the district level to deal with such attacks, headed by the district police officer, with the deputy commissioner, the FC wing commander and representatives of mine owners and miners’ union as members.

Two, if reports of FC getting money from the Dukki mine owners for the security of their mines are true, then it must devise plans to ensure fool-proof security.

Three, the police strength of 425 personnel approved by the Balochistan chief minister in 2017 should be immediately sanctioned and recruited to enable police to fulfil their lawful duties in the district.

Four, a well-planned, concerted effort should be launched by CTD Balochistan in conjunction with FIA and Nacta, to address the issue of terrorist financing through extortion from coal mines in Dukki, and elsewhere.

The most important takeaway from the Dukki massacre is not only the need to secure the miners from armed attacks, but also to address the challenge of terrorist financing based on extortion from the coal mines. The security of mines of Balochistan should be ensured to choke the funds of terrorist organisations like the BLA in Balochistan.

The writer is a former police officer who was Nacta’s first national coordinator.

Published in Dawn, November 9th, 2024