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Directorate General of Hydrocarbons Seeks Audit for Pvt Blocks for FY10-11

  • NDTV has learnt that DGH has now written to the oil ministry that CAG was also supposed to audit these two marque oil and gas blocks and 18 more operated by private companies for the year 2008-09.The CAG audit report on RIL operated KGD-6 gas block, and Cairn India operated Barmer oil field created a quite a stir in the country. But that audit was only for two financial years 2006-07 and 2007-08.NDTV has learnt that DGH has now written to the oil ministry that CAG was also supposed to audit these two marque oil and gas blocks and 18 more operated by private companies for the year 2008-09.
  • But why did CAG missed out on auditing all the 20 blocks operated by private companies and why did CAG didn't conducted the exercise for these blocks for 2008-09, which was the original mandate.“There are provisions in the PSC that allows the government to do three audits. But then there are manpower crunch in the CAG. So as per the availability those audits were done and will be done in future also,” said G C Chaturvedi, Petroleum Secretary. So as per the provision, the DGH has submitted list of 20 such blocks operated by private companies. But what is more important here is that DGH now also wants to audit all these block even for the year 2009-10 and also 2010-11. But in past the private sector operators had shown resistance the audit from CAG. And what is yet to be seen that whether the private companies would agree for an audit by CAG or the regular audit by private auditors.

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