OIL chief calls on Singh

Staff Correspondent

Dibrugarh, April 3: CMD of Oil India Limied (OIL) Utpal Bora,  along with Director (E&D) Dr P Chandrasekaran,  and a team from OIL met Manipur Chief Minister Nongthombam Biren Singh recently at Imphal to apprised Singh of the ongoing seismic activities in Manipur that are being carried out by OIL under the tiol Seismic Programme (NSP), a flagship programme of the Centre under the Ministry of Petroleum and tural Gas.

The meeting was attended by  ministers concerned and officials of the State government.  Utpal Bora.

The NSP aims to undertake a fresh appraisal in all sedimentary basins across India, especially where no scanty data is available, to have a better understanding of the hydrocarbon potential of India.

Under this programme, Oil India was assigned to carry out 870 km line seismic survey in Manipur, out of which only 4.5-km could be achieved in the last field season.

Bora, sharing the present status of the project, mentioned that there are a lot of apprehension among the local people regarding the ongoing survey activities in Manipur that have resulted in resistance towards the activities and eventual stoppage of the work.

He also said that OIL had assigned the job to M/S Asian Oil who deployed two crews in Jiribam area but both the crews could not make any remarkable progress in it because of those reasons.

Singh assured the CMD that the State government would provide full support and help to OIL to carry out the work, which is of tiol significance. He directed the DGP and addltiol home Secretary to look into the matter and do the needful on priority basis. He also asked the  Trade and Commerce minster to make necessary arrangements so that meetings can be held at village and local levels to create public awareness among the masses on the ongoing seismic activities.