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The meeting was attended by Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Novak, Chairman of the Commission and Governor of the Kemerovo Region Sergei Tsivilev, Minister of Energy Nikolai Shulginov, Acting Minister of Civil Defence, Emergencies and Disaster Relief Alexander Chupriyan, Deputy Prosecutor General Dmitry Demeshin, and representatives of specialised federal and regional executive authorities and organisations.

Igor Levitin noted that improving industrial safety at coal mining enterprises in Russia is vital for the country’s coal industry. However, the current situation in this area shows that the earlier measures are not enough and accidents at coal mines continue to cause tragic losses of life.

Head of the Federal Service for Environmental, Technological, and Nuclear Monitoring Alexander Trembitsky informed the participants that methane and coal dust explosions, as well as underground fires, present the greatest risk to the lives and health of the coal miners and can cause the most property damage. The regulatory framework underlying underground mining operations is being improved, and safety supervision in the coal industry has been tightened in order to prevent emergencies.

The participants discussed measures to toughen and improve industrial safety requirements at coal mines in Russia.

Following the meeting, recommendations will be drafted to federal and regional executive authorities and companies regarding the need to take urgent measures to improve industrial safety and labour protection, to reduce the number of accidents, and to preserve the lives and health of the coal miners.