Together, these constitute about 80 percent of the workforce while the remaining 20 percent workers are locals and Baloch, especially from the Marri tribe. There is also a chunk of workers who come from across the Afghanistan border. This is why most workers here are from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Punjab. If someone brings 200 men to me this very instant, I can appoint them straight away at the coal mines.” “In Shahrag,” in the words of a local Pashtun dweller, “one cannot remain jobless thanks to these mountains. And it is also here that the Marris live and work. The southern part of the Shahrag tehsil is where coal-laden mountains exist. Pashtuns own the majority of tribal lands in Shahrag and also live in great numbers in the town. The district is predominantly populated by Pashtuns but a sizeable population of Marri Baloch are also scattered across its mountainous areas. Situated in a valley in Harnai district in Balochistan, Shahrag boasts “300 to 400” coal mines that are mined by “over 30,000 men.” There are children working the mines, too, but an official count does not exist. Sometimes, in some places, wherever you look, you can only see wolves pretending to be human.
