Thieves Drill Hole Into Underground Pipeline To Steal Crude Oil In Bihar

Thieves dug a six-meters-deep pit and drilled a hole into an underground pipeline to steal crude oil in a village in Bihar's Khagaria district, officials said today.

The incident came to light on Tuesday when petroleum started oozing out into the fields, leading to a mad scramble among villagers. The thieves came in an oil tanker posing as officials and used a motor pump to steal oil from the pipeline on Monday night, Oil India Superintending Engineer Himanshu Singh, who headed a team that visited the village on Wednesday, told reporters. 

The OIL team inspected the site and plugged the hole, following which the oil supply, which was suspended after the incident, was restored.

"We had initially thought that the pipeline, which goes all the way to Assam, had developed a leakage. But site inspection told a different story altogether.

"We found the illegally dug pit and a hole drilled into the pipeline. Villagers also confirmed having spotted an oil tanker close to the spot on Monday night. Thieves posing as officials were on the job for some time and they decamped with a truckload of crude oil," Mr Singh said.

Police had earlier sealed the spot and informed authorities at the Barauni oil refinery in the adjoining Begusarai district.

"We will file an FIR against unknown persons in this connection," he added.

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