Heavy flow of oil in gas pipelines hampers tea production

FROM A CORRESPONDENT

Golaghat, April 21: It is the peak time for producing good quality tea in the State of Assam. Assam is the largest producer of tea in the world. The Upper Assam districts, which produce more than 50 per cent of the total annual tea production of the State, have large number of factories with modern machinery. But an unwanted situation seems to prevail in most of the tea factories in Golaghat for the last three days.

At present most of the tea factories of giant tea garden groups as well as bought tea leaf factories are run on gas supplied by Assam Gas Company Limited. This pipe gas is supplied to the factories from the oil fields in Duliajan. But now for the last three days in the gas pipelines of several tea factories in Golaghat heavy flow of oil materials instead of gas is creating tension among the tea factory authorities. This continuous flow of crude oil like materials disrupts the normal work in factories which also hampers in quality tea production.

The tea factories have stopped collection of green leaves from the small tea growers which is a great loss for them. Hundreds of kgs of green leaves have been wasted. The factory workers have collected the oil materials in drums and informed the Assam Gas Company authorities but still no fruitful measures have been taken by the authority concerned. The most remarkable point is that these highly inflammable oil materials can create heavy damage to life and property. A single spark can turn an area into high flames instantly.