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ONGC will permanently cap leaking gas well in Assam, could take another week: CM
Around 330 families have been evacuated from near the gas well since it witnessed a leak on June 12.
Assam chief minister Himanta Biswa Sarma on Friday informed that state-run Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC) will permanently cap one of its natural gas wells in Assam from where gas has been leaking for the past one week.
The gas well in Sibasagar district has been witnessing a blowout, an uncontrolled release of gas (or fuel) due to the failure of pressure control systems, since June 12 leading to fears of it becoming flammable or causing environmental damage to the area. Despite efforts, engineers from ONGC have failed to close the leakage.
“ONGC has informed us today that after failing to control the leak over the past week, they have now decided to permanently cap the well. A team of experts from the US have arrived to help in the process, which will start from Saturday. It is expected to take around 5-6 more days to stop the leak and cap the well. I request the affected residents to be patient and to cooperate with the efforts,” Sarma told journalists in Guwahati.
He stated that the capping of the well would be similar to the process used in an earlier incident in 2020 at a Oil India Limited (OIL) well in Assam which had first started leaking gas and then burst into flames. It took over five and half months. Two firefighters had died in the incident and an engineer was killed due to electrocution.
“ONGC has informed us that they will coordinate with district administration and do a detailed survey to compensate families near the well who have suffered losses and have been shifted from the area,” the CM said.
Around 330 families have been evacuated from near the gas well since it witnessed a leak on June 12. The families who have been taking shelter in a school have been provided with ₹25,000 each by the state government as an interim measure.
In a post on X, Sarma mentioned that close to 50% of the groundwork such as site preparation and equipment mobilisation, prior to capping the well, has already been completed. “The Government of India and Government of Assam are monitoring the situation 24x7 and are fully committed to ensuring safety, restoring normalcy, and resolving the issue at the earliest,” he mentioned in his post.
