Guwahati Refinery solely supplied smokeless fuel to Indian Army during Ops Sindoor: Official
Guwahati (PTI): The Guwahati Refinery, owned by Indian Oil Corporation (IOC), on Thursday said it exclusively supplied 19 thousand metric tonnes (TMT) of smokeless fuel to Indian armed forces during Operation Sindoor.
In an interaction with senior journalists, Guwahati Refinery (GR) executive director Sunil Kanti said the unit is one of the very few in the country which can produce Low Sulphur Low Aromatics SKO (LSLA SKO), and it was the sole unit to provide the specialised fuel to the army during Operation Sindoor.
"The Indian Army had requested us sometime back to produce a special fuel, which would not emit smoke. They wanted it to keep our soldiers warm in extreme cold conditions. Usually, all types of fuels emit smoke when it is burnt," he said.
Kanti said that the research and development wing of Guwahati Refinery then developed LSLA SKO for the armed forces stationed in high-altitude locations.
"During Operation Sindoor, only our refinery produced and supplied 19 TMT of LSLA SKO within record time. The product was transported to Misamari, Siliguri and Agra for further transportation to Army bases in cold border areas," he added.
From Misamari, the LSLA was sent to Arunachal Pradesh, while the product supplied to Siliguri was further transported to Sikkim, the ED-cum-Refinery Head said.
"The LSLA we had sent to Agra was given to the Indian Army stationed in Ladakh region. This is a matter of pride that Guwahati Refinery played an important role during the country's defence mechanism in Operation Sindoor," he added.
The LSLA contains approximately 1 parts per million (ppm) of sulphur against a permissible limit of 10 ppm, 2-3 per cent aromatics against 4 per cent upper limit and 30 mm smoke point.
The Guwahati Refinery is the country's first public sector unit, inaugurated in January 1962 with a capacity of 0.75 million metric tonne per annum (MMTPA).
The capacity was enhanced to 1.2 MMTPA in 2023. Currently, the crude requirement of the refinery is distributed between those from Assam and imported ones. Assam crude constitutes around 40 per cent of GR's input, while 60 per cent are imported, Kanti said.
"Earlier, we used to get fully Assam crude. But after Numaligarh Refinery came into existence, our share reduced and there is no fixed amount. Assam crude's first priority is Digboi and Numaligarh refineries. So, we are dependent on imported crude, coming from Paradip via Barauni," he added.
The senior official also said that GR is constructing a Catalytic Reforming unit (CRU), which is expected to be commissioned by May this year.
"We at present do not have the facility to produce reformate, which is a low-sulfur and high-octane-number gasoline blend component from Naphtha. This stream is required for the production of gasoline and is currently imported from other refineries," he added.
Kanti said that the upcoming 90 KTPA CRU will enable Guwahati Refinery to be self-sufficient to produce gasoline in the future.
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AIITA welcomes Karnataka’s ban on obscene songs in school events
Bhatkal: The Karnataka unit of the All India Ideal Teachers Association (AIITA) has welcomed the Karnataka government’s decision to strictly ban school children from dancing to obscene songs during educational and cultural programmes in government, aided, and private schools across the state.
AIITA Karnataka State President M. R. Manvi congratulated the government for taking what he termed an important step to preserve the sanctity of education.
“Such decisions to safeguard the dignity of school children and uphold the values of education are the need of the hour. This rule should not be limited to government schools alone but must be strictly implemented in all private educational institutions as well,” he said.
He further urged the government to address other concerns within school programmes.
“The government should not only prohibit obscene dances in the name of school anniversaries, but also ensure that plays and dialogues that incite religious hatred are avoided. Schools should be centres of harmony, not platforms for spreading hatred,” he added.
According to a recent circular issued by the Department of School Education and Literacy, obscene dances are adversely affecting the mental health and moral values of students.
In this regard, schools have been advised to use songs that promote nationalism, positive thinking, the greatness of Kannada culture, and value-based traditions instead of inappropriate content during programmes.
The circular also emphasises that students should be dressed in decent attire.
AIITA also backed the department’s warning that disciplinary action would be taken against head teachers if such guidelines are violated. The association has further demanded that district Deputy Directors of Public Instruction strictly monitor the implementation of these rules.
