Assam gas leak: CM Sonowal and Union Minister Pradhan to visit site

Following the blowout and fire at an Oil India Ltd (OIL) well in Upper Assam, Chief Minister Sarbananda Sonowal and Union Petroleum Minister Dharmendra Pradhan Saturday announced that they would jointly visit to the site in Tinsukia district for a “ground understanding of the situation”.

The visit was announced after Pradhan met Sonowal in Guwahati on Saturday.

On June 9, the Baghjan 5 well—close to the ecologically-sensitive Dibru-Saikhowa National Park and Maguri-Motapung wetland— caught fire, 14 days after it had reported a blowout, or an uncontrolled release of natural gas. The incident led to the death of two firefighters from OIL, while displacing thousands and causing extensive damage to the surrounding ecosystem.