Date:08/01/2009 URL: http://www.thehindu.com/2009/01/08/stories/2009010859761100.htm

National

Oil sector strike: 20 officers suspended, 2 arrested

Sujay Mehdudia

NEW DELHI: Defying the stay order by the High Court, the Oil Sector Officers Association (OSOA) went on an indefinite strike from Wednesday morning. This led to disruption in supply of gas to priority areas, including power plants, impacting work in four main Indian Oil Corporation refineries and forcing shutdown of the Hazira-Vijaipur-Jagdishpur pipeline.

The government came down strongly on the agitating employees and suspended 20 oil sector officers — 11 from the Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC), and three each from the Indian Oil Corporation (IOC), Bharat Petroleum Corporation Limited and Gas Authority India Limited (GAIL) — and arrested two ONGC officers for participating in the strike.

Union Home Minister P. Chidambaram reviewed the situation arising out of the strikes by oil sector executives and truckers at a meeting with the Cabinet Secretary, the Petroleum Secretary and the Transport Secretary.

Petroleum Secretary R.S. Pandey said Indian Oil Corporation had deployed the Territorial Army personnel to man its installations at Mumbai and Delhi airports to ensure that air traffic was not disrupted.

The Indian Oil Corporation said the Haldia refinery was completely shut down while its Panipat, Mathura and Koyali refineries were in the “cooling down” phase — a process before the units are completely shut down.

OSOA president Amit Kumar claimed the strike was total in all oil PSUs except Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Limited. However, reports suggested that in BPCL the striking employees were divided while it had no impact on Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Limited (HPCL).

Oil companies have stocks for 15-20 days. However, the National Thermal Power Corporation (NTPC) said generation from its plants had been affected due to curtailment of natural gas supply.

The strike has resulted in a shutdown of ONGC’s South Bassein and its satellite fields in the Western offshore and privately operated Panna Mukta and Tapti fields.