10 June 2020: PIB Summary & Analysis

June 10th, 2020 PIB:- Download PDF Here

TABLE OF CONTENTS

1. Blowout in Gas Well
2. Asiatic Lion
3. Pradhan Mantri Krishi Sinchayee Yojana
4. World Accreditation Day
5. STIP 2020

1. Blowout in Gas Well

Context:

Oil India Ltd (OIL), a PSU, reported that while carrying out workover operations in the Gas Producing Well Baghjan-5 under Baghjan Oilfield in Tinsukia district of Assam, the well suddenly became active on a day in May 2020 and a blowout occurred.

Details:

• The blowout led to uncontrolled flow of gas from the well.
• OIL India sought support from ONGC, which immediately deployed their Crisis Management Team (CMT).
• OIL also mobilized a Singapore based firm for disaster control.
• While the clearing operations were going on at the well site, the well caught fire on 9^th June 2020 around noon time, spreading the fire in an area of about 200 meters around the well site.
  • The cause of the fire has not been ascertained till now.
• The fire in around 200 meters periphery has completely burnt about 15 houses, while another 10-15 houses have been partially affected.
• It is also reported that two firemen of Oil India Ltd have died.
• The affected families will be given relief and compensation as decided by the State Government of Assam.
• It has been reported that except at the well plinth area, the fire around the site has mostly extinguished.
• However, the burning of gas at the well mouth will continue till the well is capped.
• Gas has been spewing uncontrollably from the Baghjan well since the blowout on May 27.
• The debris of burnt rig, fire engines and other material around the well site will be removed before any operation can be started to cap the well.
• Arrangements of continuous water supply will have to be made before activities are undertaken at the site which is likely to take 5-6 days to make these arrangements, and all the operations will take about 4 weeks to complete.
• Around one thousand six hundred families had already been evacuated from the nearby affected areas and are camped in relief camps set up at nearby safe areas.
• OIL has decided to provide an amount of Rs. 30,000/- to each of the affected families as an immediate relief.
• The well is located in the vicinity of Dibru-Saikhowa National Park and Maguri Motapung Beel, a wetland.
  • OIL has engaged an accredited agency to carry out environment impact in and around Dibru-Saikhowa National Park and Maguri Motapung Beel.
  • Due to seepage of crude, condensate and other chemicals from the gas well, there has been large-scale damage to the ecology of the area, according to environmentalists and various groups.

What is a Blowout?

• A blowout is the uncontrolled release of crude oil and/or natural gas from an oil well or gas well after pressure control systems have failed.
• If not properly monitored, changes in pressure that can occur while the well is being drilled can cause combustible hydrocarbons to flow unchecked and at high pressures and flow rates.
• If this flow of hydrocarbons is not stopped in time, the hydrocarbons can ignite into a deadly firestorm called a blowout.
• Because of the immense cost and danger associated with oil well blowouts, the bulk of the well control industry revolves around the prevention and avoidance of blowouts.
• Unfortunately, because a blowout only takes a brief moment to occur, it is necessary that there be methods in place to combat them when the need arises.
• Blowouts are a hazard to life, the ecology and environment and also cause huge economic losses. The oil well is also lost since the resource is burnt out.

How are blowouts controlled?

• Most commonly, when a well is lost to a blowout, the drilling package will have collapsed around the well, making proper assessment of the situation difficult.
  • Firefighters arrive as quickly as possible and use machinery to remove the damaged rig and associated debris so they can assess the situation and choose the best method to fight the blowout.
• In the early days of fighting oil well fires, the most common technique to smother a blowout was to snuff it with a dynamite blast.
  • The intention is to blast fuel and oxygen away from the flame, effectively eliminating the fuel source, similar to snuffing out a candle.
  • Although the first instance of this method dates back to 1913, dynamite blasting continues to be one of the most frequently employed methods.
• Another common method employed by oil well firefighters involves drilling a “relief” well or wells into and intersecting the blowing well. This intersection gives the kill fluid a conduit to the surface, enabling what is called a “subsurface kill.”
• A more complicated method for bringing a blown-out well under control involves carefully capping the well with a new blowout preventer, or “BOP.”
  • BOPs are essentially large valves on the surface of the well that quickly shut off the well as a last ditch precaution to prevent a blowout from occurring.

2. Asiatic Lion

Context:

The population of the Asiatic Lion is increasing in the Gir Forest in Gujarat.

Details:

• The population of the Asiatic Lion has increased by almost 29% in 5 years.
• Geographically, the distribution area is up by 36% (22,000 sq km in 2015 to 30,000 sq km in 2020).
• The population has climbed from 523 in 2015 to 674 in 2020.
• Currently, Asiatic lions are found in the protected areas and agro-pastoral landscape of Saurashtra, covering nine districts in Gujarat.

About Asiatic Lion:

• Scientific name: Panthera Leo Leo
• Its current range is restricted to the Gir National Park and environs in Gujarat. Historically, it inhabited much of Western Asia and the Middle East up to northern India.
• IUCN status: Endangered

3. Pradhan Mantri Krishi Sinchayee Yojana

Context:

Annual allotment of Rs. 4000 crore made to State Governments under ‘Per Drop More Crop’ component of Pradhan Mantri Krishi Sinchayee Yojana (PMKSY- PDMC) for the year 2020-21.

Know more about the Pradhan Mantri Krishi Sinchayee Yojana at the linked article.

4. World Accreditation Day

Context:

QCI Celebrates the World Accreditation Day 2020.

About the World Accreditation Day:

• The World Accreditation Day (WAD) is celebrated on 9^th June every year to highlight as well as promote the role of accreditation in trade & economy.
• The theme for WAD 2020 is “Accreditation: Improving Food Safety”, as decided by the International Accreditation Forum (IAF) and the International Laboratory Accreditation Cooperation (ILAC).

About the Quality Council of India (QCI):

• Quality Council of India (QCI) was set up in 1997 jointly by the Government of India and the Indian Industry represented by the three premier industry associations i.e. Associated Chambers of Commerce and Industry of India (ASSOCHAM), Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) and Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI), to establish and operate national accreditation structure and promote quality through National Quality Campaign.
• The Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT), Ministry of Commerce & Industry, is the nodal ministry for QCI.
• The Mission of QCI is to lead nationwide quality movement in India by involving all stakeholders for emphasis on adherence to quality standards in all spheres of activities primarily for promoting and protecting interests of the nation and its citizens.

5. STIP 2020

Context:

Public & expert consultation ‘Town hall Meet’ for Science, Technology and Innovation Policy (STIP) 2020 to be launched.

To know more about STIP 2020, check PIB dated Jun 2^nd 2020.

June 10th, 2020 PIB:- Download PDF Here

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