By all accounts, the blowout and fire at the Baghjan oil field in Assam’s Tinsukia district appeared to have caught Oil India Limited (OIL), which operates the facility, off guard. Though OIL has been running oil/gas wells in Upper Assam for years, it appeared woefully short of expertise to contain the damage from the blowout. The gas leak has caused extensive devastation in the Dibru-Saikhowa National Park and Maguri-Motapung wetland and forced villagers in the neighbourhood to flee the area — over 7,000 persons are now lodged in relief camps. On Tuesday, two firefighters with OIL died, fighting the blaze.
The political economy of Upper Assam revolves around cash-rich companies like OIL — the nature of the oil and gas industry was one of the triggers of the Assam agitation four decades ago. Public safety and sensitivity to the local environment have to be an integral part of its managerial vision. In light of the Tinsukia incident, authorities need to review the running of these facilities and beef up safety measures or their very presence in the region will be increasingly questioned.
