• A miner pats his donkey at a coal mine in Choa Saidan Shah in Punjab province.
    A miner pats his donkey at a coal mine in Choa Saidan Shah in Punjab province.
  • A donkey sits on the ground on a hot day after transporting coal.
    A donkey sits on the ground on a hot day after transporting coal.
  • A young miner rushes his donkeys back into the mine.
    A young miner rushes his donkeys back into the mine.
  • Sami Ullah (L) and Bilal give medicine to their sick donkey, which is suffering from fever.
    Sami Ullah (L) and Bilal give medicine to their sick donkey, which is suffering from fever.
  • Tears of coal dust run down a donkey's face as it looks out of its shelter.
    Tears of coal dust run down a donkey's face as it looks out of its shelter.
  • A donkey walks past piles of coal at a mine.
    A donkey walks past piles of coal at a mine.
  • A young miner leads his team of donkeys back to the coal face underground.
    A young miner leads his team of donkeys back to the coal face underground.
  • Donkeys eat at a coal mine.
    Donkeys eat at a coal mine.
  • A miner with a stick in his hand walks his donkeys into the depths of a coal mine.
    A miner with a stick in his hand walks his donkeys into the depths of a coal mine.

Beast of burden: Pakistan coal miner’s donkeys

Mark Asquith

May 13, 2014

  • English
  • Arabic

Coal miners in Chao Saidan Shah use donkeys to transport coal from the depths of the mines to the surface. The donkeys make around 20 trips per day carrying sacks weighing about 20kg (44lbs) each. The work is dangerous with the constant risk of cave-ins. The miners say they do what they can to care for the animals, with their limited resources, but the difficult conditions mean the donkeys’ life expectancy is 12-13 years.

National ViewDigitalADMRegional