Efforts on to set up oil depot near Sairang rly stn: Mizoram min

Aizawl: Plans are underway to establish an oil depot near the proposed Sairang rail station, approximately 27km west of Aizawl, Mizoram food, civil supplies & consumer affairs minister B Lalchhanzova said in the assembly on Thursday.
In response to a query from Mizo National Front (MNF) member K Laldingliana, Lalchhanzova said Indian Oil Corporation Limited (IOCL) has not yet identified suitable land for the proposed oil depot. He added that previous attempts to establish an oil depot were unsuccessful due to issues with land identification transparency.
"Following the IOCL's pleas to choose locations, the Zoram People's Movement (ZPM) govt on Feb 4 accorded permission to the oil giant to conduct survey by using drones to identify the land at Sairang, In order to ensure that transparency is maintained in survey and choosing the site for oil depot, the state govt will not interfere in the survey by the IOCL," he said. The minister added that IOCL has been instructed to select a location that allows for future expansion possibilities.
Addressing supplementary questions, Lalchhanzova said the cooking gas bottling plant at Mualkhang village in Kolasib district, adjacent to Assam, operates primarily under IOCL's authority rather than the state govt's control. He added that the expansion and modernisation of the gas bottling plant is progressing rapidly, utilising the central govt's allocation of Rs 225 crore, following the state govt's land lease to IOCL. Forest clearance is anticipated shortly.
The state's sole existing oil depot, situated at Vairengte in Kolasib district, was established approximately 50 years ago.