But for the 90,000 people living around Jharia, there is no benefit.
Coal fires rage below the surface and noxious gases spew from fissures in and around houses.
Nearly everybody in Jharia is ill.
Occasionally the ground collapses, swallowing buildings and people into the chasm.
Coal can ignite spontaneously at rather low temperatures when exposed to certain conditions of temperature and oxygen.
This may occur naturally or the combustion process may be triggered by other causes.
In Jharai, a lot of mining is done illegally in open cast mines.
Jharias fires were first detected in 1916, and were caused primarily because of improperly decommissioned abandoned mines.
But Belgaria has no school, no medical care, no shops and no jobs.
No wonder, many decided to stay in Jharia despite the blazes, the smoke and the pollution.
Photo credit
Photo: Sanjit Das
Sources:edugreen.teri.res.in/The Global Journal/Earth Magazine/LA Times/WSJ
