Oil India Limited (OIL) gets embroiled in another fiasco

OUR CORRESPONDENT

TINSUKIA: Oil India Limited (OIL) is embroiled in another fiasco after a member of the documentary film making team- Discovery Communication, India- engaged by OIL to document the Baghjan incident, tested positive for COVID-19 and allegedly flouted quarantine norms and exposed hundreds of camp inmates of Baghjan to infection.

Claiming to be an 'emergency' situation, OIL CGM (Administration) HC Borah had sought exemption from general quarantine norms in letters addressed to the Deputy Commissioner, Dibrugarh (vide CGM(A) Baghjan/668 of 3.7.2020 & 709 of 13.7.2020) in respect of two teams that arrived Dibrugarh en-route to Duliajan on different dates.

The first team comprising five members- Farhan Zama, Sabina Sabrina Duviviez, ShalendraSuwalka, Aakash Gupta and Punit - that arrived in Duliajan on July 3 was supposed to leave on July 10 after completion of the assignment till capping of the blazing well. But the team back and was joined by the second team of three members- Umang Chaudhri, Shivam Anil Poddar and Mohit Kakodhar. This team arrived on July 13, keeping Tinsukia district administration in the dark. After Shivam Anil Kumar tested positive on Friday, fear gripped people of Baghjan, especially the several hundred camp inmates with whom the team had interacted. According to camp inmates, there were more than five members who were filming together. Though a source in OIL contended that five members from the first team were at the blast site while the second team was isolated at Duliajan, the question arises as to why the OIL sought exemption from general quarantine and how the Dibrugarh Deputy Commissioner justified 'film documentation' an emergency event that qualifies exemption under COVID-19 protocol?

The media fraternity in Tinsukia district are up in arms now as OIL denied local media to carry out any photography close to blast site since the blowout took place on May 27 accorded hospitality to professional bodies defying standard norms.

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