Hyderabad, June 18: The bloated bodies of all 17 miners, killed in the flooding of an underground coalmine in Andhra Pradesh, were retrieved today after a gruelling 40 hour-long de-watering operation at Godavarikhani mine to pump out six lakh gallons of water. "The bodies of all the workers trapped inside have been recovered and identified," a spokesman of Singareni Collieries Company Limited (SCCL) told a news agency over phone from Godavarikhani.

Seventeen miners were trapped on Monday while they were engaged in clearing operations at a depth of 110 meters following a sudden gush of water from one of the coal seams at an underground mine - `seven lep (life extension project)- in Godavarikhani, about 70 kms from the district headquarter town of Karimnagar.

Though the cause of the mishap, the worst in the 114-year old history of SCCL, was not known, the state government yesterday ordered a judicial probe by a sitting high court judge, amidst fears over lack of proper mine safety measures.

The state government has also announced an ex-gratia of Rs 6 lakh for the families of each of the deceased.

Soon after the mishap, heavy-duty pumps were pressed into service to drain out nearly six lakh gallons of water that had gushed into the mining area, trapping the miners.

Bureau Report