Equipments are being readied at OIL’s Baghjan well site.
Dibrugarh (Assam):
Equipment and accessories required for the snubbing operation at OIL’s Baghjan well site, which has been spewing oil for the last 162 days, have been brought from Canada and are being put in place, sources in the oil major said on Thursday.
The snubbing unit for the well killing operation, brought from Calgary in Canada, reached the well site in Assam’s Tinsukia district on Wednesday evening, according to a release by OIL.
It is expected that the operation will commence within the next few days after completion of all necessary preoperation activities, it said.
Meanwhile, the flow of gas from the well to the nearby early production setup (EPS) at Baghjan is being maintained with all operating parameters within the desired level and with safety measures in place, the release said.
It said the final assessment report of the impacted families by the office of Deputy Commissioner, Tinsukia and directives of the National Green Tribunal are yet to be received.
OIL on the basis of the interim recommendations of NGT and discussions with the district administration has released Rs 36.90 crore as compensation to the affected people and this includes an interim relief of Rs 10.93 crore to 3,000 families who had stayed in relief camps.
Moreover, an amount of Rs 25 lakh each were paid to the 12 families whose houses were damaged the most and Rs 10 lakh to each of the 57 families whose houses were also damaged during the fire. Another 561 families whose houses or standing crops and horticulture were partially damaged received Rs 2.5 lakh each.
OIL has deposited all the compensation and relief amounts as mandated by the government/statutory authorities, the release said.
The oil PSU following discussions with the Tinsukia deputy commissioner has agreed to release Rs 50,000 to 1289 families every month to take care of their livelihood expenses till the well is brought under control.
A total of 46,786 metric tonnes of crude oil and 124.15 million metric st. cubic meter of natural gas have been lost till date as a result of protests, blockades, bandhs in and around Baghjan area since May 27 l, the release said.
Well number 5 at Baghjan has been spewing gas uncontrollably since May 27. It caught fire on June 9, killing two of OIL’s firefighters at the site. On September 9, a 25-year old electrical engineer of OIL lost his life due to high voltage electric shock when he was working at the well site.
On July 22, three foreign experts from a Singapore firm which was invited to assist OIL and ONGC experts to put out the fire, received burn injuries while they were removing a spool from the well head.
