ABSTRACT
In the oil world the word “crude production” covers exploration, development, as well as extraction of crude oil. The oil industry follows a number of conventions in this respect, but, like many other business practices, their economic significance is not always clear. The only oilfield of India, Digboi, was discovered accidentally by a British railway company, which was also interested in coal and timber and, hence, neglected the development of this oilfield for a period because of its preoccupation with other activities. Exploratory activities were not undertaken seriously before Independence, for a number of reasons. The oilfield of Nahorkatiya, situated about twenty-five miles south-west of Digboi in Assam, was discovered by Burmah Oil in 1953, at a depth of about 12,000 feet. The Oil and Natural Gas Commission of the Government discovered oilfields at Rudrasagar in 1962, and at Lokhwa in 1964, both situated in the Sibsagar region of Assam.
