Dibrugarh (Assam), 6 January (HS): Panic spread once again in Dibrugarh district on Tuesday morning after a crude oil pipeline burst at Shalmari Dighalia in the Tinkhong area. Notably, the pipeline had ruptured at the same spot late Sunday night, raising serious concerns over safety and maintenance.

According to local residents, the fear caused by the previous night’s leak had not subsided when the pipeline burst again at around 10 am, releasing crude oil under high pressure. The fresh leakage triggered widespread panic among villagers, who feared a major accident in the oil-producing region.

Locals accused Oil India Limited (OIL) of negligence, alleging that the repair work carried out after the first rupture was only temporary. They claimed that although OIL officials had stopped the leakage following the initial burst, crude oil began gushing again from the same damaged section on Tuesday morning. After nearly an hour of effort, OIL personnel managed to plug the leakage for the second time.

The repeated leaks have caused extensive damage in the area, with crude oil spreading across agricultural fields and fish ponds in the Tinkhong region of Dibrugarh. A thick layer of oil has covered farmlands and water bodies, while the strong smell of crude has engulfed the locality, leading to widespread anger among residents.

Villagers said that frequent pipeline failures in Dibrugarh highlight the deteriorating condition of ageing oil infrastructure. They demanded immediate compensation for affected families and called for permanent solutions to prevent such incidents in the future, including burying or replacing old pipelines.

The incident has once again raised serious concerns over pipeline safety, environmental damage and corporate accountability in Dibrugarh, one of Assam’s major oil-producing districts.-------

Hindusthan Samachar / Sriprakash