This is the moment Lilaghar river in central India changed its course and plunged into a huge open-pit coal mine on September 29 In a stunning environmental disaster.

Officials acted to evacuate an unspecified number of workers on time but were unable to save any of the heavy machinery in the huge pit.

It will take two to four months to pump out water and restore the Dipka coal mine, said officials.

Dipka coal mine, situated in Korba district of Chattisgarh state, is one of the four larg coal mines managed by South Eastern Coalfields Limited (SECL), a government-owned corporation.

The dramatic flooding of the mine was filmed by various members of a non-profit organisation Chattisgarh Bachao Andolan (CBA), who rushed to the spot, on getting the information from local villagers.

Villagers said it had been raining heavily in Korba district since a week fuelling the Lilaghar river.

The swollen river shifted course, broke embankments built to protect the mine and plunged into the pit, they said.

Alok Shukla of CBA said mining had altered the flood plains of the Lilaghar river.

“Deforestation, accumulation of silt and excavation have diverted the natural flow of the river. The heavy rain led to the disaster, which may recur regularly from now on,” he said.

“Reckless mining has polluted and affected seven to eight rivers in Chattisgarh. A similar disaster is waiting to happen in Raigarh district with Kelo river,” he warned.