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Baghjan well fire allowed to burn on ecological concerns

By Ron Duarah

DIBRUGARH, July 15 - Ecological concerns prevailed while allowing the Baghjan gas well fire to burn on for one or two more days since yesterday, it is reliably learnt. The crisis managers at the disaster site had on Tuesday had achieved control over the inferno. But if the fire was to be extinguished and kept that way, the well head was still spewing natural gas and associated condensates at a very high pressure of 4,500 pounds per square inch. In the interim reporting haste, one concluded that the fire was extinguished for good.

Now if gas and condensate flow out freely from the well head without the fire, the immediate neighbourhood would be contaminated once again, as has been the case between May 27 and June 9 this year. With the nearby Dangori river in spate, the condensates would have flown towards the Dibru Saikhowa National Park. Any accident and at risk would be the National Park, and nobody wants that. It is gathered that condensates are much more imflammable than even petrol. Hence, a condensate fire is much more destructive. Additionally, the unburnt gas would have vitiated the Baghjan atmosphere. Hence it was considered that burning the fuel for the final hours would be the best thing to do. So, the Baghjan fire remains.

�Our priority is to install the blow out preventer (BOP) and thereafter kill the well. While doing this, the flame would be extinguished anyway,� said Tridiv Hazarika, spokesman of Oil India Limited.

Asked to explain the sequence of the BOP installation in layman�s language, OIL�s Resident Chief Executive, Dilip Kumar Das said, first the fire would be diverted/shifted with help of a cylindrical pipe that will have both ends open. This pipe would be lifted to raise the level of the fire�s base, and then the BOP would be mechanically lodged on the well head.

Meanwhile, Naba Moran, secretary of the All Moran Students� Union, and Saroj Gohain, working president of the All Assam Muttuck Sanmilan and vice president of Muttuck Rajbongsho Unnayan Samiti warned Oil India of deliberately delaying the fire control activities at Baghjan.

They have expressed their strong objection to OIL�s act of inviting a Discovery channel team to do a documentary on the Baghjan disaster. They demanded OIL should concentrate on compensation and rehabilitation of the hundreds of affected families and desist from diversionary tactics.

Naba Moran alleged that it appears OIL is mishandling the disaster, and making local families suffer for 49 days. He alleged that filming a documentary in such troubled times is an objectionable activity.

Saroj Gohain said he and his associations are unhappy that in these Covid-19 times, three people are being allowed to be hosted without normal Covid-19 precautions. He added that he and his colleagues suspect OIL of delaying the disaster fighting to accommodate the documentary crew.

A crew of three from Discovery Communications India have arrived at Duliajan on July 13. They have been subjected to swab tests, but allowed to go without the mandatory quarantine. OIL has undertaken to house them �in an exclusive guest house�. But local leaders in Tinsukia like Gohain are taking strong objection to this. OIL had stated in their application for exempting the Discovery crew from quarantine, saying, �Since this is an emergency situation, the above mentioned personnel are required to visit Duliajan for making a documentary on the Baghjan incident.�

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