The Supreme Court on Wednesday granted state-run Oil India Limited permission to withdraw an interim application and submit a fresh petition contesting the Union government’s rejection of its underground hydrocarbon extraction project beneath Assam’s Dibru-Saikhowa National Park.
A three-judge bench comprising Chief Justice Surya Kant, Justice Joymalya Bagchi, and Justice V. Mohana permitted the withdrawal after procedural obstacles prevented the state explorer’s application from being listed in an ongoing omnibus environmental case.
Procedural Hurdle In Omnibus Forest Case
Senior advocate Rakesh Dwivedi, representing Oil India, requested an urgent hearing for the application, which had been filed within the landmark 1995 environmental litigation titled T.N. Godavarman Thirumulpad versus Union of India. Dwivedi informed the court that the Supreme Court registry had declined to number the interlocutory application, citing a standing judicial directive that barred further interim pleas in the decades-old proceeding.
Chief Justice Kant observed that the court intended to bring the Godavarman proceedings to a formal conclusion. The bench noted that while the registry was bound by the previous directive, the court would be willing to hear a newly instituted petition if the public sector undertaking had a distinct and fresh cause of action. Following the bench’s observation, counsel sought leave to withdraw the interlocutory application with liberty to initiate fresh proceedings, which the court formally granted.
Challenge To Ministry’s Land Rejection
The dispute stems from decisions taken by the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change and its Forest Advisory Committee. Oil India is seeking to overturn the committee’s July 4, 2024 meeting minutes and the ministry’s subsequent formal rejection on August 2, 2024, which denied approval for the non-forestry diversion of 0.069 hectares of forest land in Assam’s Tinsukia district.
In its legal challenge, the energy company argued that central authorities incorrectly invoked an April 26, 2023 Supreme Court judgment that prohibited mining activities within national parks, wildlife sanctuaries, and their surrounding one-kilometre buffer zones.
Oil India asserted that hydrocarbon extraction via Extended Reach Drilling differs fundamentally from conventional open-cast or underground mining and operates under an independent legal and regulatory regime. Counsel argued that because drilling rigs and surface infrastructure are situated outside the protected boundary, the project does not breach prohibitions governing the park’s surface.
Project Significance And Prior Regulatory Approvals
Dwivedi highlighted the strategic urgency of the project during the hearing, submitting that the reserves targeted by the development account for nearly three per cent of India’s domestic petroleum requirements.
According to the company’s submissions, the proposed operation from the Baghjan Petroleum Mining Lease in the Tinsukia Wildlife Division uses directional drilling pads located outside the park perimeter. The wells are designed to descend approximately 4,000 metres vertically before turning horizontally to reach oil and gas deposits located between 3,500 and 4,000 metres beneath the national park floor.
The explorer previously secured clearances for sub-surface access in the region. The Supreme Court had granted conditional permission for hydrocarbon extraction beneath Dibru-Saikhowa using Extended Reach Drilling in 2017, following recommendations by the Standing Committee of the National Board for Wildlife.
Subsequent regulatory developments included a January 2020 notification establishing an Eco-Sensitive Zone ranging from zero to 8.7 kilometres around segments of the park, as well as an environmental clearance granted in May 2020 covering exploration and testing across seven underground locations, subject to requisite forest land approvals.
