Guwahati, Nov. 1: Conservation groups blocking Oil India Ltd’s foray into the presumably oil-rich Brah-maputra basin have found an unlikely ally in Ulfa.

The outlawed militant group today threatened to strongly resist attempts to explore oil in the Brahmaputra basin and, in a more rhetorical vein, declared that it would no longer allow Delhi to exploit Assam’s natural resources. It said the state did not have “unlimited” reservoirs of “natural wealth” and Delhi must stay away from whatever is left.

Exploration giant OIL’s move to tap oil reserves in the basin has already been opposed by various organisations, including the Worldwide Fund for Nature.

Conservationists are worried about the possibility of oil exploration impacting the survival of the highly endangered freshwater dolphins and other aquatic species that live in the Brahmaputra.

The threats to the river dolphin include poaching, unregulated fishing of dolphin prey and growth of human settlements along the Brahmaputra.

With Ulfa joining the campaign to block oil exploration in the basin, the issue has assumed an entirely new dimension.

However, this is not the first time that an oil exploration project has faced opposition from a militant group. In the mid-90s, the Oil and Natural Gas Corporation had to abandon oilfields in Wokha district of Nagaland after a similar threat from the NSCN (Isak-Muivah).

Echoing the concern of environmentalists, Ulfa said exploration of oil along a 175-km stretch of the Brahmaputra basin would surely have an adverse impact on the ecology of the area. Apart from endangering aquatic species in the Brahmaputra, oil exploration will affect the Dibru-Saikhowa National Park, it said.

The militant group expressed its views in its monthly bulletin, Swadhinata (Freedom).

Ulfa accused another company, the UK-based Premier Oil, of harming the ecology of the Dihing Patkai forest reserve in the name of oil exploration.

It said Delhi had once again shown its “colonial mindset” by allowing oil exploration despite knowing that it could have an adverse impact on the environment.

The outfit also used the latest edition of Swadhinata to clarify that it does not intend to harm surrendered militants without reason, as “propagated by vested-interest groups”.

“We are not against Sulfa (acronym for surrendered Ulfa) per se. We have already announced general amnesty, which everyone is aware of. But at the same time, we are bound to take action against those who assist the Indian army in their anti-Ulfa operations and harass people,” it said.

SLIPPERY ISSUE

Ulfa’s stand

Resist attempts to explore oil in Brahmaputra basin.

The reason

The expeditions might impact the survival the highly-endangered fresh water dolphins that live in the Brahmaputra.

Precedent

In the mid-nineties the NSCN forced the ONCG to abandon a project in Wokha