On May 27, a gas well in Upper Assam’s Tinsukia district operated by Oil India Limited had a “blowout”: it started to leak gas and condensa...
On May 27, a gas well in Upper Assam’s Tinsukia district operated by Oil India Limited had a “blowout”: it started to leak gas and condensate uncontrollably. Two weeks later, on June 9, as the blowout became a blaze, there was also an explosion of anger in Assam.
Anger about Oil India Limited’s alleged inept handling of the disaster, which displaced thousands of people, forcing them into cramped relief camps in the middle of a raging pandemic. Anger about the corporation’s supposed disregard for environmental regulations that had ended up causing irreparable damage to flora and fauna – the oil field is sandwiched between a wetland and a national park. Anger about the company’s allegedly mindless extraction of oil and gas from “indigenous” lands, giving very little in return to the local populations. Anger about the very operations of Oil India Limited in the area.
It was all pervasive: “violent” protests around the well site as Oil India attempted clearing operations; fuming television anchors; scathing newspaper editorials; seething social media posts.
Although overshadowed by this outpouring of condemnation, there were also gestures of support for Oil India. Take the letter dashed off by faculty in the schools of engineering, applied geology and petroleum technology at Dibrugarh University, Upper Assam’s most venerated public institute of higher learning....
