World’s oldest oil refinery suddenly turns a poll issue

The issues include a manpower crunch, allegedly caused by design, and the absence of upgrades.

The world’s oldest running oil refinery, located in the northeast corner of India, has suddenly gained significance as a poll issue.

BJP president Rajnath Singh, during a rally in Dibrugarh Lok Sabha constituency last week, brought up the issues of the oil refinery and said his party would institute a probe. The issues include a manpower crunch, allegedly caused by design, and the absence of upgrades. The local people feel there is a systematic move to close the refinery.

“There is some design to create a situation that will force the shutdown of Digboi refinery forever,” said Anil Chandra Saikia, a retired headmaster of Saumar Vidyapeeth. “Rajnath Singh is right. But what did their government do when they were in power?” he asked.

Story continues below this ad

The Digboi refinery, commissioned in 1901, was set up after oil was first struck when the Assam Railway & Trading Company was laying tracks from Dibrugarh to Makum Coalfields in 1867. However, till date it continues to be the world’s tiniest refinery with a capacity that was enhanced from 0.50 million tonnes per year to 0.65 only in 2010. The official version is that the crude oil production in Assam is only around 5 million tonnes per year as against the combined capacity of 7 million tonnes per year for four refineries in the state — Digboi (0.65), Guwahati (1), Bongaigaon (2.35) and Numaligarh (3).

“The worst part is neither the Congress nor the BJP has ever tried to revive it. Digboi has never figured in debates and discussions in Parliament in recent decades, except when Sarbananda Sonowal was the Dibrugarh MP during 2004-2009,” said Nibas Chandra Sarma, secretary of the CITU-affiliated Mineral Oil Workers’ Union.

“Over three lakh people are directly or indirectly dependent on Digboi refinery. If it shuts down, the entire area will plunge into darkness,” said Nikhil Koch, Digboi unit president of the All Assam Students’ Union.

But while the BJP has been vocal over Digboi in the campaign, the Congress has countered it by claiming credit for the refinery’s modernisation that was completed in 2010. “It was because of the Congress government that the refinery was modernised and its capacity raised at a cost about Rs 2,000 crore,” said eight-time Digboi MLA Rameswar Dhanowar.

Story continues below this ad

The AGP wants to take the issue beyond Digboi. “Why just Digboi? Look at the BVFCL’s fertilizer factory at Namrup. It is also on the verge of closure because successive governments at the Centre, be it the Congress or the BJP, have neglected it. There is no major investment to modernise the oil wells of upper Assam.” said Anup Phukan, the AGP candidate from Dibrugarh.