October 16, 1977, Forty Years Ago: Oil off Bombay

Express front page forty years ago

Oil off Bombay

The Oil and Natural Gas Commission discovered oil in a well on structure 38-B which is about 70 kilometres south-west of Bombay. Announcing the discovery, the minister for petroleum, H.N. Bahuguna, said production testing had shown that the capacity of the well was 1,475 barrels a day, which was a welcome sign. The minister said seven wells drilled earlier in this area had all turned out dry. For delineating the field two more wells would be drilled by ONGC in the next few months. The oil-bearing well was spud on September 13 by the drilling ship, Gettysburg of Atwood Oceanics. Drilling was completed on September 29 and production testing commenced on October 2. Bahuguna said so far at the production testing stage, the well turned out 1,475 barrels a day, the exact capacity would be known after the other wells are bored in this structure. He said the rate of production of oil in the Bassein area was 1,500 barrels a day per well.

Congress infighting

Indira Gandhi severely castigated the Congress leadership for its inability to stand up to the Janata Party’s onslaughts and to give a new lead to the people. Mrs Gandhi received loud applause and as the one-day AICC session ended around midnight there were prolonged shouts of “Indira zindabad” from her supporters. Mrs Gandhi went headlong into the charge of personality cult and asked why she should not remain in the Congress. “Is it because some people feel guilty or want to save their skins? Or is it because they think the Janata government may do something to them?” she asked.

India-China ties

External affairs minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee said India has conveyed to the US and Yugoslavia that “this country is anxious to normalise its relations with China notwithstanding the border question which will have to be resolved”. He indicated that the normalisation process can go on in other fields.