CPI leader Dasgupta writes to PM on KG basin land

Accuses Petroleum Minister Veerappa Moily of stalling relinquishment of over 6,000 sq km of land in the KG basin by RIL

CPI leader Gurudas Dasgupta today accused Petroleum Minister Veerappa Moily of stalling relinquishment of over 6,000 sq km of land in the KG basin by RIL, saying the government could realise Rs 60,000 crore by selling gas discovered in this area.

"If this area is relinquished and the discoveries handed to ONGC for production, the government can realise Rs 60,000 crore through the sale of gas from these discoveries," he said in a letter to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh.

In this context, he referred to two reports of the Director General of Hydrocarbons (DGH) and CAG recommendations which suggested relinquishment by RIL of this area from the KG-D6 block.

In the letter, he quoted DGH reports as saying that the Petroleum and Natural Gas Ministry "may intimate to the contractor (RIL) about PEL (Petroleum Exploration Licence) in respect of 6601 sq km of contract area in the first instance in the block KG-D6 under article 3.11 of PSC (Production Sharing Contract)".

Observing that the DGH view was examined by the Ministry, Dasgupta claimed "when the matter reached the Petroleum Minister, he overruled all the officials and directed that RIL should be consulted in the matter! The view of RIL are already on record and further consultation is only being done with an intention to bail out RIL."

"We are witnessing a sorry spectacle of the private contractor (RIL) trying to browbeat its own regulatory (DGH)," the CPI leader said in the letter.

He also claimed that "a sinister move is afoot to replace the present DGH by a pliable person at the instance of the Petroleum Minister".