History of khewra salt Mine

History:
Geologists put the age of rock-salt found in Khewra at about 600 million years. In geological timescale this time period is called Precambrian.

It is said that discovery of rock salt in Khewra area dates back to as early as circa 326 BC. According to a legend, the army of Alexander the great was resting in Khewra area after a battle with Raja Porus. Some horses of Alexander‘s army were then seen licking rock salt in the area. Somebody from Alexander‘s army noted down the incident in his ledger or diary and hence?we came to know that salt was discovered?here circa 326 BC.?History is however silent?on which language this incident was recorded in (Greek?) or where is that diary now. But since those days people in the area continued to collect salt from the out crops of salt seams that were exposed at the hill surface.
It is said that the chiefs of ‘Janjua-Raja’ tribe were the first to initiate the standard mining practices here in the 13th Century.


However, a chronology of the Mughal Rule in the Sub-Continent says that when the Mughals emerged supreme in the Punjab, they took over the mine from the local tribal chiefs and, thereafter, started to work on it until Punjab came under the Sikhs. Under Sikh rule the mine came up to be known as ‘Khewra Salt Mine’. The British ousted the Sikhs and annexed Punjab in 1849 and renamed the mine as the ‘May Mine’ in 1870.


In 1872, Dr. H. Warth, a renowned British Mining Engineer, laid out the main tunnel at ground level. He proposed that only 50% of salt be excavated from the working seam while the remaining 50% be left as pillars. 155 years later this same methodlogy called the ‘room and pillar’ method is still being used in Khewra mining operation.
To make salt from Khewra mines accessible to rest of India, British laid a railway line which was opened as a meter-gauge on January 1, 1883. It was later converted to a siding and a broad gauge line was laid which is operational to date.