Jaswant Singh Gill (1939-2019) was an Indian chief engineer who risked his life to save 65 coal miners during the coal mine tragedy in Raniganj, West Bengal, in 1989. The rescue operation is considered to be India’s first rescue operation and the world’s first succeeded. coal mine rescue operation. On 26 November 2019, he died of a heart attack at his home in Amritsar, Punjab, India
Wiki/Biography
Sardar Jaswant Singh Gill was born on Wednesday, 22 November 1939 (age 80 years at death) in Sathiala, Amritsar, Punjab, India. His zodiac sign is Sagittarius. From class 1 to 4, he studied in an Urdu School in Amritsar, Punjab. He then completed class 12 at Khalsa College School, Amritsar, Punjab, India. He attended Khalsa College, Amritsar, to pursue his B.Sc. (non-medical) in 1959. He then attended Panjab University, Chandigarh. From 1961 to 1965, he completed his studies in Mining Engineering at the Indian Institute of Technology (Indian School of Mines), Dhanbad, Jharkhand. In 2018, he attended Khalsa College, Amritsar, to pursue LLB. However, he was unable to complete the degree as he died in 2019.
Physical appearance
Height (approx): 5′ 10″
Hair Color: Salt & Pepper
Eye Color: Black
Family
Jaswant Singh belongs to a Sikh family.
Parents & Siblings
His father, Daswandha Singh Gill, was a senior clerk in the postal department in Amritsar, Punjab. His mother’s name is Sardarni Preetam Kaur Gill. He has two brothers named Kulwant Singh Gill (retd. bank manager) and Dr Harwant Singh Gill (D. Ortho, retired as SMO from PCMS College). He has two younger sisters. His sister Narinder Kaur is a teacher, who retired as the headmaster of a government school. His second sister Dr Raminder Kaur is a pathologist and former HOD at Rajindra Medical College, Patiala, and GMC, Amritsar. Jaswant Singh was the fourth child of his parents.
Wife & Children
On 19 October 1969, she married Nirdosh Kaur. The couple has two sons and two daughters. One of his sons Sarpreet Singh Gill is a cardiologist working at Johns Hopkins University in the United States, and one of his daughters is Poonam Gill.
Jaswant Singh Gill and his wife
Jaswant Singh Gill with his son Dr Sarpreet Singh Gill
Jaswant Singh Gill’s daughter Poonam Gill
Career
After completing his studies in mining engineering, he got a job offer from the coal firm Chand Thapar & Bros (coal Sales) Ltd. After working there for several years, Jaswant resigned, and in 1972, he started working at Coal India Limited as an engineer. After a few years, he was promoted as Sub-Divisional Engineer and then Executive Engineer at Coal India Limited. Later, he was promoted as Chief General Manager ED (Safety & Rescue) at Coal India Limited, Raniganj, West Bengal.
Coal Mine Rescue Operation 1989
In 1989, Jaswant worked as General Manager ED (Safety & Rescue) at Coal India Limited, Raniganj, West Bengal. On 13 November 1989, while 220 coal miners were working in a coal mine in Raniganj, West Bengal, during a series of blasts to break up the coal mine, someone accidentally touched the top of the mine, which caused water to start flooding the mine. . In the commotion, out of 220 miners, 71 miners were trapped in the pit and the rest were evacuated from the mine immediately. Soon, the shaft began to flood with water in which 6 coal miners drowned, and 65 coal miners were trapped.
Jaswant Singh at the site of the Raniganj coal mine tragedy (1989)
When Jaswant Singh arrived at the site, he decided to save the lives of 65 miners at any cost. He then got the idea to make a steel capsule that would help in transporting one person at a time. Immediately, a 22-inch-diameter borehole was drilled through which the capsule could move. After working day and night for 2 days, the capsule was ready. Jaswant Singh had briefed the two rescue men about the rescue process, but at the last moment, they escaped. Jaswant Singh then decided that he himself would carry out the rescue process. He then asked the chairman’s permission to enter the steel capsule. However, the chairman was not ready to risk Jaswant’s life. Then, Jaswant somehow convinced the chairman, who said,
The man who saved this miner, his name will be written in golden letters in the history of mining.”
On November 16, 1989, at 2:30 am, Jaswant entered the capsule and descended into the pit to rescue the trapped miners. In an interview, Jaswant’s son, while sharing the entire incident, said,
At 2:30 in the morning, on the night of November 16, 1989, my father entered the Capsule to enter a certain death trap. Almost a hundred thousand people who had gathered at the site shouted slogans to encourage him. As the Capsule begins its descent, the torque in the new steel ropes begins to relax and causes the Capsule to rotate at high speed clockwise and then in a counter-clockwise motion. It was a nerve-wracking undertaking, but my father overcame his fears with pure determination and focus. In about 15 minutes he reached the bottom of the hole when a manual winch was used to lower the Capsule.”
His son went on to share how Jaswant Singh saved the miners one by one. He said,
As soon as he opened the front door of the Capsule, he saw 65 terrified faces in front of him with fear of death writ large on their faces. He grabs the nearest worker, puts him in the Capsule and signals with the hammer he carries for the Capsule to be raised. He then turned to the remaining miners and asked if any of them were injured or sick. The first 9 tokens are given to those with injuries and those with fever. He then asked for the hierarchy of workers and gave tokens from the youngest worker to the most senior worker and told them that he would empty the last mine after dispatching them all one by one.”
Jaswant Singh Gill with the capsule used in the coal mine tragedy
After evacuating all the miners, Jaswant Singh came out of the borehole at the end. The whole process takes about 6 hours. Later, he helped in another rescue operation of 14 miners trapped in a coal mine in East Jaintia Hills, Meghalaya. Jaswant Singh retired from his service in Coal India Lt. in 1998, and in 2008, he was appointed by the Disaster Management Committee, Amritsar, Punjab, India, as one of its members. On April 26, 2018, he began working as the President of Rotary International.
Awards, Honors, Achievements
- 1991: Sarvottam Jeevan Raksha Padak by then President Ramaswamy Venkataraman
Jaswant Singh Gill holds the Sarvottam Jeevan Raksha Padak
Sarvottam Jeevan Raksha Padak by Jaswant Singh Gill by then President Ramaswamy Venkataraman
- 2005: Limca Book of Record as national record holder for the most successful & largest rescue operation in mining history
- 29 November 2009: Lifetime Achievement Award for Mining by Indian School of Mines Alumni Association (ISMAA), Delhi
- November 1, 2013: Lifetime Achievement Award and Rs 1 lakh by then Union Minister Sri Prakash Jaiswal
- 2013: Swami Vivekanand Excellence Award
Jaswant Singh Gill received the Swami Vivekanand Excellence Award
- 24 December 2014: Award for Outstanding Service to Humanity from Harman Educational & Social Welfare Society, Amritsar
- 7 June 2018: World Book of Record, London, UK, for Largest Coal Mine Rescue operation
Jaswant Singh Gill receives a certificate from the Book of World Records
- 2018: Iconic India Awards by Real Flavors Media Group
Jaswant Singh Gill received Iconic India Award
- 2019: Pride of the Nation Award, Delhi
Jaswant Singh Gill received the Pride of the Nation Award
- 12 May 2019: Honorary Doctorate (PhD) by Universal Achievement University, Tamil Nadu
Jaswant Singh Gill Award
Other Awards
- Vijay Rath National Award from IICM, Ranchi
Vijay Rath Jaswant Singh Gill Award
- Excellence in Safety Award from Coal India Ltd, Calcutta
- Bhagat Puran Singh Award from Guru Arjun Dev Mandal, Patiala
- Farishta-E-Kaum Award from Sache Patshah Magazine, New Delhi
Jaswant Singh Gill received the award
Death
On November 26, 2019, he suffered a heart attack at his home in Amritsar, Punjab, India. His antim ardaas (last rites) were performed at Gurudwara Chhevin Patshahi, Block A/B, Ranjit Avenue, Amritsar, Punjab, India.
Facts/Trivia
- Jaswant Singh is also known as ‘The Capsule Gill.’
- In India, November 16 is marked as ‘Rescue Day’ to commemorate the rescue operation carried out by Jaswant Singh in 1989.
- In 2019, he was invited to the talk show ‘Josh Talks’ (Punjabi), as a guest speaker.
Jaswant Singh Gill in Josh Talks
- In memory of Jaswant Singh Gill, the Jaswant Singh Gill Memorial Industrial Safety Excellence Award has been instituted with an award money of Rs 50,000.
- A chowk on Majitha Street in Amritsar, Punjab, India, is also named after him.
Chowk on Majitha Street named after Er Jaswant Singh Gill
- In his memory, a memorial arch at Kunustoria Area, Eastern Coalfield Limited, and a park at ECL West Bengal were built. A bulletin was also issued in his memory.
Memorial gate made to commemorate Jaswant Singh Gill in Kunustoria Area, Eastern Coalfields Limited
The park is named in memory of Jaswant Singh Gill
- On 11 April 2022, his portrait was unveiled at the Sikh Museum at the Holy Golden Temple. The ceremony was attended by his family members.
Family members of Jaswant Singh Gill at an event where his portrait was unveiled at the Sikh Museum on the premises of the Holy Golden Temple
- During an interview, while talking about making a biopic on Jaswant Singh Gill, his son said,
In 2017, he (Jaswant) was approached by Tinu Desai from Mumbai, who had directed the Bollywood film Rustom with actor Akshay Kumar and offered to make a Hindi film to save him. Sadly, my father passed away on November 26, 2019, following a massive heart attack.”
Categories: Biography
Source: SCHOOL TRANG DAI
