Newz Desk, Durgapur: A controversy has erupted over the ongoing drilling activity inside the South Bengal State Transport Corporation (SBSTC) Trunk Road Bus Depot in Durgapur, where a private company has been conducting exploratory work to determine the presence of underground methane gas.
Questions have been raised over how permission was granted for the drilling despite the corporation currently functioning without a governing board. Critics have alleged that the approval was issued by local depot authorities without informing the state Transport Department or Transport Minister Arup Biswas.
The exploratory work, which has been underway for nearly a month, involves the use of heavy drilling equipment inside the depot premises.
Former SBSTC Chairman Subhas Mondal expressed concern over the decision, saying such activities require approval from the corporation’s board. “I do not know how a private company was allowed to undertake drilling inside the depot in the absence of a governing board. Such work should have been approved by the board or, at the very least, by the Transport Department,” he said.
Responding to the controversy, SBSTC Managing Director Pranab Kumar Ghosh said the private company had approached the corporation seeking permission to conduct a geological survey. “The local management granted permission for the exploratory drilling,” he said.
A spokesperson for the private company maintained that the exercise was solely intended to determine whether methane gas exists beneath the site and insisted that there was no safety risk associated with the survey.
However, concerns have been raised by local residents as the depot shares a boundary with densely populated residential areas. Since methane is highly flammable, residents fear that any accidental gas release could pose a serious hazard. Two temporary water reservoirs have reportedly been created inside the depot to store groundwater extracted during the drilling process.
The issue has also revived concerns over industrial safety. Around one-and-a-half years ago, a worker reportedly died after falling into a water reservoir at another methane exploration site operated by the same company in Parulia, prompting questions about safety standards and accountability in the event of an accident.
BJP MLA Laxman Ghorui has demanded a probe into the matter, alleging several irregularities within the SBSTC. Besides questioning the drilling activity, he claimed that several profitable bus routes had been discontinued and alleged politically motivated transfers of employees. He called for a comprehensive investigation into the functioning of the transport corporation.
