Mr Naik goes to Rio, with 50 others

And, air tickets would have been bought at Rs 80,000 apiece (the cheapest fare) so that each member can attend the WPC whose theme this year is ‘‘Petroleum Industry: Excellence and Responsibility in Serving Society.’’

Naik is assisted by four officials from his ministry and the chairmen of the government-owned oil firms as well as the Director General of Hydrocarbons (DGH) to ‘‘discuss bilateral issues of mutual interest with his counterparts from important countries and with the OPEC,’’ says an official statement.

‘‘The WPC forum will thus provide an opportunity for experience sharing within the global petroleum industry while also catalysing business alliances and technology partnerships,’’ it claims. The breakup, excluding ministry officials, is: 12 from Oil and Natural Gas Corporation, eight each from Indian Oil Corporation and Gas Authority of India Ltd, seven from Hindustan Petroleum Corporation, five from Bharat Petroleum Corporation, four from the Directorate General of Hydrocarbons and two from Oil India Ltd.

The apparent rationale for such a large team is that the oil industry is showcasing its achievements with each company setting up a booth in the 1,000-square-foot national pavilion.

There would have been more people on Naik’s squad had it not been for the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO). Naik wanted to take his Minister of State for Petroleum Santosh Gangwar too but the PMO struck it down.

The PMO also curtailed Naik’s visit by two days to August 30-September 5 because of a scheduled meeting of the Cabinet Committee on Disinvestment on September 7.

So Naik, who left the capital last Thursday to reach Rio after a two-day stay in Zurich, will be back on the midnight of September 5-6 with his ministry officials.

Others will troop in later with DGH Avinash Chandra arriving on September 11. Of course, nobody is staying on until 2003 when the carnival starts in March.