Locals protest against construction of oil refinery in Ratnagiri

RATNAGIRI: The Government of Maharashtra has approved the construction of the Ratnagiri Refinery and Petrochemicals Ltd (RRPCL), Ratnagiri district of the Konkan belt of Maharashtra. It has been hailed as the world’s largest single location refinery. But the local residents of the Konkan belt are not happy with this development, and have been protesting vehemently against the same.

The RRPCL refinery was originally proposed in 2015 to be built in Nanar village of Ratnagiri district. The residents had protested against it, citing environmental damage that the oil refinery would cause to the region, thereby affecting traditional livelihood activities like fishing, horticulture, etc. Although, BJP government’s ally at the time, the Shiv Sena party had supported the locals in their resistance. Following this, the idea had been scrapped.

But recently, Shiv Sena has been ceding its earlier position. The government has now planned to re-start the project at a different location, Basru-Solgaon, in the same district. RRPCL will be a joint venture between Indian companies, Bharat Petroleum Corporation Ltd, Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Ltd and Indian Oil Corporation Ltd, which hold 50 percent of the stakes, and Saudi Aramco and Abu Dhabi National Oil Company. The government hopes that the construction of RRPCL will bring development and jobs to the Konkan region.