Jharia, coalfield and former town, northern Jharkhand state, eastern India. The coalfield lies in the Damodar River valley and covers about 110 square miles (280 square km). The bituminous coal produced there is suitable for coke (most of India’s coal comes from the Jharia and Raniganj fields in the valley).
Coal mining began in Jharia in 1894, and there are now more than 20 underground mines and several large open-cast coal mines there. The coal is worked from open pits, but wages and safety conditions are poor. Underground fires were first noted in Jharia in 1916, and they have continued to spread, destroying properties and killing miners. The miners are usually from local unions and depend on Jharia’s coal-mining economy for their livelihoods; many also work crops at harvesttime.
The town of Jharia was incorporated into the city of Dhanbad in 2006..