Miner's Day is celebrated annually in Belarus on the last Sunday of August. In 2026, the holiday falls on August 30. Rector Sergei Kharitonchik addressed the scientists, faculty, and students of the Belarusian National Technical University with congratulations.
"Dear miners, mining industry veterans, faculty, graduates, and students of BNTU!
On behalf of the thousands of staff of the Belarusian National Technical University and on my own behalf, I sincerely congratulate you on your professional holiday – Miner's Day! The mining industry is a reliable foundation for the national economy, ensuring energy stability, industrial sovereignty, and the confident development of the Republic of Belarus. Mining has always required exceptional skill, iron discipline, courage, and responsibility, earning deep respect in society.
BNTU is rightfully proud of its key role in the human resources and scientific and technological support of this strategic industry. The Faculty of Mining and Environmental Engineering has long been a reliable source of highly qualified specialists. Thanks to a unique blend of fundamental academic knowledge and cutting-edge scientific research, the faculty's scientists and faculty train a new generation of mining engineers capable of effectively addressing the most complex challenges of modern subsoil use.
The professionalism and authority of the Polytechnic University's School of Engineering are clearly demonstrated by the geography and scale of our graduates' work. Today, qualified engineers trained at BNTU successfully work at major flagships of the domestic industry, such as Belaruskali, BELAZ holding companies, the country's leading peat enterprises, as well as at iconic underground construction sites. Their deep expertise, innovative approach, and dedication to their chosen field enable us to effectively develop underground resources, implement intelligent technologies, and ensure environmentally friendly production.
I express my sincere gratitude to the faculty for their high teaching skills and the training of personnel who meet the stringent demands of the real economy. Special thanks go to the veterans of the mining industry, whose experience and labor achievements serve as a primary guide for today's students – future conquerors of the earth's depths.
On this festive day, I wish all mining workers, teachers, and future miners good health, inexhaustible energy, safe work, and the conquest of new professional heights! May each workday bring you confidence in the future, and may you always be greeted at home by the unconditional support of loved ones, giving you the strength to achieve new victories!
Rector of BNTU
History and Traditions of the Holiday
The holiday was inspired by the record of miner Alexei Stakhanov: in 1935, he mined 102 tons of coal in one shift, compared to the standard 7 tons. This event marked the beginning of the Miners' Movement. Miner's Day was officially established on September 10, 1947, and was first celebrated on August 29, 1948. Since then, it has been celebrated on the last Sunday of August.
Belarus has maintained this tradition, formalizing it with Presidential Decree No. 318 of June 19, 1998, "On State Holidays, Public Holidays, and Memorable Dates in the Republic of Belarus." This attention to the profession is no coincidence, as the mining industry is a key pillar of the economy, and the country firmly holds its status as the world's largest producer and supplier of potash fertilizers.
Today, this holiday is traditionally used not only to honor labor dynasties and award the best workers in the industry, but also to recall the unspoken customs of the mining engineering profession. For example, before their first descent into the face, young specialists are traditionally given a taste of "miner's tear"—clean water straight from their helmets—symbolizing purity of intention.
Incidentally, the equipment itself is associated with a strict superstition: it is strictly forbidden to place the helmet on its side or pass it from hand to hand, as miners believe that doing so could "damage the roof." For the same reason, whistling underground is strictly taboo, as it is believed to trigger a rockfall. Caution is even exercised in words: miners never refer to a shift as "the last," exclusively using the word "the last." When seeing each other off to work, colleagues traditionally wish each other a "green shift" and a safe return to the surface—this unspoken password signifies a wish for a safe journey underground and a sure return to the surface to the sun and family.
We are training engineers who will shape the future of the industry at BNTU.
Training specialists for the mining industry at BNTU is a large-scale undertaking that encompasses several areas. The Faculty of Mining and Environmental Engineering has traditionally been the core of these. Under the leadership of Dean Andrey Kologrivko, the faculty continues to build direct ties with industry. For example, targeted student recruitment is being actively organized specifically to meet the needs of the country's mining companies. Furthermore, the Faculty of Mining and Environmental Engineering has become a recognized international platform: BNTU hosts the supporting educational and research center of the International Competence Center in Mining Engineering Education under the auspices of UNESCO, where the faculty implements joint research and educational programs with the Empress Catherine II Saint Petersburg Mining University.
At the same time, the training of personnel for mines and quarries extends far beyond the boundaries of a single faculty, and other university departments make a significant contribution to this process. Thus, the Faculty of Mechanical Engineering, within the specialization "Mechanical Engineering Technology, Metal-Cutting Machines and Tools," trains engineers to create and maintain complex mining equipment. Today, the faculty, whose dean is Anastasia Arabey, continues to systematically develop its technological base: to ensure that future specialists are proficient in advanced design tools, a high-tech competence center, "Digital Mechanical Engineering," opened at the end of 2025.
The Faculty of Power Engineering, in its specializations "Electric Power Engineering and Electrical Engineering" and "Thermal Power Engineering and Thermal Engineering," trains specialists capable of ensuring uninterrupted power supply and ventilation in mines. Evgeny Ponomarenko serves as dean of this faculty. A major expansion of the Faculty of Power Engineering's educational facilities took place in the spring of 2026. The faculty opened the doors of the new educational and laboratory building No. 21 at BNTU, equipped with modern equipment. Graduates of the Automobile and Tractor Faculty, specializing in "Automobiles, Tractors, Mobile and Technological Complexes," "Operation of Ground Transport and Technological Machines and Complexes," and "Transport Process Technologies," are responsible for complex logistics, ore removal, and the maintenance of heavy quarry equipment. The Faculty of Automobile and Tractor Engineering demonstrates its commitment to integrating with the real economy through concrete steps. Dean Sergei Skirkovsky oversees the overall coordination of this work. This spring, for example, the Faculty opened a branch of the "Hydropneumatic Automation and Hydropneumatic Drive" department at the S.I. Vavilov Metallurgical Plant, a management company of the BelOMO holding company. This summer, it signed an agreement with Hefei University of Technology to establish a joint research laboratory, the "Laboratory of Electric and Autonomous Vehicles."
Today, no major mining construction project in Belarus can be completed without BNTU engineers. University graduates built and commissioned the Petrikovsky Mining and Processing Complex in the Gomel Region from scratch, which is now operating at full capacity. Meanwhile, at the Nezhinsky Mining and Processing Plant in Lyuban, BNTU specialists successfully completed the complex project of sinking shafts through aquifers using ground freezing technology. Another large-scale project is underway in the Soligorsk District: engineers there are preparing for the opening of the Varvarinsky Mine, digging underground horizons at a depth of over 700 meters.
Developing Science and Technology
The university's research base has been developing over decades. As early as 1971, student projects won awards at the All-Union Scientific Paper Competition. Later, in 1990–1991, the Belarusian Polytechnic Institute received a first-degree diploma and a gold medal from the USSR Exhibition of Economic Achievements for the development of a bulk material drying system.
Outstanding university scientists have made significant contributions to the development of raw material extraction and processing technologies. For many years, the Mining Department was headed by Boris Bogatov, Chairman of the Belarusian Mining Academy, contributing to the training of personnel and the implementation of modern mining technologies. Today, these traditions are continued by the Head of the Department, Alexander Pavlovsky.
At the same time, the Mining Machinery Department, led by Nikolai Berezovsky, develops mineral processing technologies and modernizes underground equipment. Environmental safety of the subsoil remains a key focus of the faculty, as is the Department of Environmental Engineering, headed by Anna Tsyganova. Thanks to this integrated approach, combining the efforts of specialists from various fields, the FGDIE scientific school conducts large-scale research, designing cutting-edge equipment and improving the environmental friendliness of mineral extraction.
Behind every meter of rock mined and every production record is the precise calculations of mining engineers, and BNTU continues to provide the industry with specialists capable of tackling the most ambitious challenges. Happy holiday, miners!
