THE DRAINING AWAY OF ASSAM'S OIL
RESOURCES
( Only one example ,the
exploitation)
The history of Assam since the last century is closely linked with the discovery of oil and its subsequent and continuing exploitation by firstly, the British, and later in the post-Independence period by the colonial Govt. of India. This phase of Assam's history began in November 1866. In that fateful year one Mr. Good Enafe of the Calcutta Machinery attempted a manual digging of an oil well in the Naharpung area in Upper Assam. After finding no oil at a depth of 120feet he gave up. In March 1867 the first oil well in the Asian continent to be dug using mechanical means was started in the Makum Namdang area also in Upper Assam. They hit oil at 118 feet and over a tone of crude oil was extracted. In 1889 the Assam Railway & Trading Company began massive oil exploration and production in Digboi. 1893 saw the formation of Assam Oil Syndicate to handle oil production in Assam and a complex sprung up in north of Digboi. This fructified in 1901 with the establishing of the Assam Oil Company that started producing 500 barrels of crude oil per day and established a refinery to refine this crude in Digboi itself. In 1911 the Burma Oil Company came to Assam with the intention of oil exploration and production and soon they discovered massive oil reserves in Surma Valley.
TODAY IN UPPER ASSAM ALONE THE ANNUAL OIL PRODUCTION IS 5 MILLION TONNES.
Later the Oil India Ltd. was set up to exploit the natural crude oil and natural gas of Assam. The company set up the oil and gas based Namrup Fertilizer plant, a petrochemical plant in the same area and also a power complex using gas for production of electricity. Further in Duliajan a plant was set up to manufacture Liquid Petroleum Gas or LPG and market the same as cooking gas all over India.
The British as a colonial power with a history of looting and exploitaion of underdeveloped countries all over the world, did the same in Assam. The Indian colonial govt. has been perhaps the most ardent students of the British and continued this exploitaion of all of Assam's natural resources, however in a more subtle and secretive manner. Special clauses inserted in Indian constitution such as the Articles 246 to 248 ensured that Assam did not gain much from the oil production. The people of Assam have never benefited from the oil revenue. On the other hand they have been kept completely in the dark and not informed about the factual reality of the oil reserves, its production, refinement, sales, revenue accrued etc.
In 1948 Delhi and its appointed oil companies sold a metric tonne (MT) of Assam's crude oil at Rs. 1382. Assam received Rs. 61 per MT as royalty. As taxes the central government received Rs. 532 and gave Assam Rs. 131 out of this. In subsequent years the price of oil increased substantially but the minimal royalty did not, in equal ratio.
In 1991-92 the natural gas in Assam was still not utilized fruitfully. 56% was flared off. The official figures in 1992-93 were Rs. 30 lakh per day of natural gas wasted.
ANNUAL PRODUCTION OF CRUDE OIL IN ASSAM
Oil well/field Production in million tons Refinery:-
| Naharkatia 0.26 million tones | ||||||||||
| Digboi " 0.75 " " | ||||||||||
| Noonmati " 1.40 " " | ||||||||||
| Barauni (Bihar) | ||||||||||
| Moran 0.60 " " Barauni |
From the above table we can see that two-third of Assam's crude oil is refined outside the state. As a result the peoples of Assam are deprived of crores of rupees in revenue and employment opportunities.
Apart from this the Indian State machinery has not given a thought to the future of the peoples of Assam but are systematically draining off all of Assam's oil reserves. The table below gives the official figures on oil reserves in Assam and the projections on production etc.:-
Year Oil Reserves Annual Production Projected Production total depletion In million tones yield (years) of reserves
1971 62.90 MT 3.542 MT 17.7 Years 1989 AD 1981 89.00 MT 4.373 MT 20.4 years 2002 AD 1990 144.95 MT 5.000 MT 29.1 years 2019 AD
We can see from the above table that Assam's oil reserves are expected to be completely drained off and depleted by the year 2019 AD. But the figures also reveal that every decade more and more oil reserves are being discovered. It is worth mentioning that the Shell Company recently discovered an oil reserve having 14000 metric tonnes of oil. The pertinent fact is that the central government has kept all findings about the oil and mineral resources, and facts and figures secret. In the name of maintaining official secrets and national security the facts of Assam's oil reserves are classified and never disclosed to the peoples of Assam , as the reality of the sustained economic exploitation of the natural wealth of Assam would make the people revolt against the ruthless Indian State machinery. What is Assam's contribution to the total Indian production of oil and what does it gain from this? The table below exposes the truth behind the farce of "Independence" and democracy, which India so proudly claims while continuing the colonial exploitation of a marginalised people.
ASSAM'S CONTRIBUTION TO INDIAN OIL PRODUCTION
Year Production in Lakh tones Production in Lakh tonnes Percentage (Assam) (Total Indian Output)
1974 37.4 lakh tonnes 74.91 lakh tonnes 49.92 % 1974 40.8 " " 111.7 " " 36.52 % 1980 10.6 " " 49.0 " " 21.63 % 1981 43.9 " " 48.8 " " 89.95 % A comparative statement is given below of the average annual revenue which Assam gets in relation to what the central government receives :-
Sl No. Item Indian Govt. Assam Govt. Rupees in crores) (Rupees in crores)
1. Natural Gas 900.00 (Royality) 481.00 2. Excise &custom 913.00 (Sale) 151.00 Duty 3. Public sector oil 655.oo Companies profits 4, Corporate taxes 145.00 & dividends
Total 2623.00 632.00
Thus at any given time the Indian colonial government earns for every tone of Assam's oil, Rs. 2623.00, while Assam earns a measly Rs. 632.00 per tone.
Further we can see from the profits ONGC has gained from exploitation of Assam's oil the extent to which the Indian State machinery is continuing the colonial legacy of the British.
Year Profit (in crores) Production in million tonnes
1991-92 403.32 ---- 1992-93 788.20 ---- 1993-94 1271.90 24 1994-95 1710.00 29 1995-96 2259.00 34 1996-97 2674.00 36
Industry & Allied Tea Industry
Total Nos of Tea Estate 9 Total Area 6493.81 Hect. Total Production 8798911 Kg. • Forest
Total Forest Area 84321.26 Sq.Kms • Industry
NO MAJOR & MEDIUM INDUSTRY Registered under Industry Dept. 76 Under Factory Act 26
• Employment
Employment Exchange 2 Registered Unemployment 42822
• Transport Total Registered Vehicle 5593
• Road
National Highway 87 Kms Metallic Road 200 kms
Land usage
Total area of Assam: 30318 square miles (about the size of Maine, about 4 times the size of New Jersey, about one fifth the size of California, about one ninth the size of Texas)
Prime agriculture 33.11 Unnamable 30.76 Forests 25.42 Grazing lands 2.38 Plantations 3.39 Residential 4.94 Total 100.00
Major industrial products of Assam:
Tea, coal, matches, plywood, sugar, fertilizer, jute, textiles, petroleum crude, oil refinary products, wheat flour, paper, cement Production of Mineral Resources (1985) (Units are in million metric tons) Crude Oil 4583 Coal 850 Natural Gas 771 Limestone 168
Coal
Makum, Marherita, Nazira, Lankadaman, Jaipur, Ledo Namdum, Koliajan - Total production: 0.6% of India's production
Crude Oil
Naharkatiya, Moran, Hugrizan, Rudrasagar, Galeky, Lakuwa, Nazira, Teok - Total production: more than 50% of India's production
Natural Gas
Naharkatiya, Moran, Lakuwa,Rudrasagar,Galeky
Limeston
Garampani, Koliajan
Forest Resources
About 25% of the state's land area; Main products are timber, bamboo, cane, fuel; Support plywood, match, paper and paper pulp industries
Power Resources
Water, natural gas, coal and oil (mostly
underutilized)
Assam has 28% of the total hydropower potential of India
Tea Industry (largest industry in Assam)
First tea plantation started in Assam: 1835 Land under plantation in 1871: 300,000 acres Land under plantation in 1981: 494,000 acres Yield in 1933: 99 million kilograms Yield in 1938: 118 million kilograms Yield in 1982: 303 million kilograms No of plantations in 1971: 750 No of plantations in 1981: 777 Number of people employed in 1938: 486,250 Number of people employed in 1942: 497,106 Number of people employed in 1980: 449,000 Number of people dependent on tea industry (current): about 12-15% of Assam's population Guwahati Tea Auction Center (GTAC) inaugurated: Sep 25, 1970
Sale at GTAC in 1971-72: 21,998 thousand kilograms Sale at GTAC in 1974-75: 26,626 thousand kilograms Sale at GTAC in 1980: 6,256,000 thousand kilograms Sale at GTAC in 1981: 6,497,000 thousand kilograms Sale at GTAC in 1982: 7,534,000 thousand kilograms
Petroleum Industry
Oil discovery in Assam: 1825 Commercial production began: 1899 Assam Oil Company (AOC) formed: 1899 Burmah Oil Company takes over AOC: 1921 Production in 1977: 4.47 million tons Production in 1980: 1.06 million gallons Production in 1981: 4.39million gallons
Coal Industry
Coal discovered in Assam: 1825 Production in 1979-80: 582,000 thousand tons Production in 1980-81: 651,000 thousand tons
Agriculture (note: 1 hectare = 2.47 acres)
No of people dependent on agriculture: 70% Food crops: Rice, wheat, pulses, potato, maize Cash crops: Tea, jute, oilseeds, tobacco, sugarcane Total area of Assam: 7,852,000 hectares Total cropped area (1977-78): 3,311,000 hectares Total cultivable wasteland (1977-78): 244,000 hectares Total area under food crops (1975-76): 2,800,000 Total area under rice (1981-82): 2,260,000 hectares Total number of operational holdings (agricultural; 1976-77): 2,250,000 Average size of operational holding (agricultural; 1976-77): 1.37 hectares
Major Industries in Assam
Jute mill Silghat Silk mill Jagiroad Chemical fertilizers Namrup Petrochemical Namrup, Bongaigaon Oil refinary Digboi, Noonmati, Bongaigaon Paper mill Jagiroad, Panchgram, Jogighopa Match factory Dhubri Cement factory Bokajan Sugar mill Barua Bamun Gaon, Chargola, Kampur Yarn mill Chariduar, Chandrapur Vegetable ghee mill Amingaon Iron pipes Gotanagar (Guwahati) Railway repair workshop Bongaigaon, New Bongaigaon, Dibrugarh Chemical plants Guwahati, Chandrapur
Transportation
Roadways (1984-85) 26,352 kilometers (16, 233 miles) of road National highway 2,035 kilometers (1254 miles) Railway track (1988) 2388 kilometers (1471 miles) Airports 6
Electricity
In 1995-96 the installed capacity was 597 MW. In March 1996, 21,665 villages (out of 21,995) had electricity. New power stations are under construction al Lakwa and under the Karbi-Langpi hydro-electric project scheme.
Oil and Gas
Assam contains important oil-fields and produces about 15% of India's crude oil. In 1995-96 production of crude oil was 5.04 tons (including Nagaland), that of gas was 1,881 million cubic meters.
Water
Irrigation potential that had been created up to 1994-95 was 0.67 million hectares. Two major and ten medium projects were in hand.
Minerals
Coal production in 1991 was 982,000 tons. The state also has limestone, refractory clay, dolomite and corundum.
Agriculture
There are 848 tea plantations in the
state, and growing tea is the principal industry. Production in
1990-91 was 380 million kilograms accounting for over 50% of
India's production.
Over 72% of the cultivated area is under food crops, of which the
most important is rice. Total foodgrain production in 1994-95 was
3.49 million tons. Main cash crops are jute, tea, cotton,
oilseeds, sugarcane, fruits and potatoes. Wheat production in
1994-95 was 0.1 million tons, rice was 3.31 million tons and
pulses were 50,400 tons.
Forestry
In 1996 there were 18,242 sq. km. Of
reserved forests under administration of the state Forest
Department. Assam produced 50% of the plywood in India
There is additional 8,530 sq. km. of unclosed forests, together
amounting to 39% of total area of the state.
Revenue from forests on 1993-94 was Rs. 213.1 million.
Industry
Sericulture and handloom weaving, both silk and cotton are important home industries together with the manufacturing of brass, cane and bamboo articles.
The main heavy industry is petro-chemicals. There are 3 oil refineries with another one under construction.
Other industries include manufacturing paper, nylon, electronic goods, cement, fertilizer, sugar, jute and plywood products, and rice and oil milling.
There were 17,103 small-scale industries in 1994.
The state employed 1.3 million persons in various offices and enterprises.
