The day-one of the 96 hour oil-blockade against Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC) in Upper Assam by the All Assam Students' Union (AASU) has passed off peacefully today without affecting much the operations of the company.
A company source from the ONGC Nazira said that though attendance at offices were thin, the operations at oil fields were "more or less normal." But he added that as regular maintenance works were affected to some extent, the loss due to the oil blockade will be reflected later. He said that the company had taken advance measures for its operations to continue smoothly in view of the ensuing blockade.
"Despite steadfastly denying any attempts to private ONGC's Assam Asset for last two months, I don't understand why a section of the society has been behaving so irresponsibly," the source said. The 96 hour oil blockade, which started from 6 am today morning, by AASU has been called in protest against the alleged move by ONGC to sell of its oilfields in Assam to private companies. "It is not the ONGC management that is weakening the company's operations in Assam rather it is these people who are weakening ONGC in Assam," he rued.
He said that senior officials from ONGC Delhi had come down to Assam yesterday and had meetings with the agitating groups in an attempt to dispel the rumours and speculations of privatisation.