Union Petroleum Minister Hardeep Singh Puri visited the Digboi Centenary Museum at the historic Digboi Refinery in Assam on Tuesday, June 23, 2026, paying tribute to a landmark that stands at the very origin of India's oil industry. The refinery, established in 1901 and recognised as the world's second-oldest operating refinery, is often called the 'Gangotri of the Indian Oil Industry' — a reference to the sacred source of a great river, signifying where India's energy journey began.

Context

Puri described the museum and refinery as 'inspiring reminders of our remarkable progress and enduring spirit of innovation.' The Digboi Refinery traces its origins to the oil discovery in Assam in 1889, when the region became the site of India's first commercial petroleum find. The refinery was commissioned under the Assam Oil Company in 1901 and has remained operational for over 125 years, making it a living monument to India's industrial and energy heritage.

The Centenary Museum at the site preserves artefacts, equipment, and documents chronicling the full arc of India's early exploration and refining journey — from colonial-era drilling rigs to post-independence expansion under public-sector stewardship. Today, the refinery is operated by Indian Oil Corporation (IOC), the state-owned downstream giant that manages a significant share of India's petroleum infrastructure.

Policy Backdrop

The ministerial visit comes as India pursues a dual agenda: deepening energy security through domestic production and simultaneously accelerating a transition toward cleaner fuels. Puri invoked the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, framing the heritage site within the broader national goals of energy security, self-reliance (Atmanirbhar Bharat), and a green energy future.

India's upstream hydrocarbon policy has evolved significantly since the New Exploration Licensing Policy (NELP) introduced in 1999, which sought to draw private investment into oil and gas exploration. On the demand side, the Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana, launched in 2016, expanded access to clean cooking fuel for millions of households. More recently, India announced a net-zero emissions target by 2070 at COP26 and launched the National Green Hydrogen Mission to diversify the energy mix away from fossil fuels.

Digboi, in this context, represents both the foundation on which India's energy system was built and a counterpoint to where policy now aims to go — a managed, long-term transition rather than an abrupt departure from hydrocarbons.

Stakeholders and Impact

The Digboi Refinery and its surrounding township in Tinsukia district, Assam, have been central to the livelihoods of generations of oil industry workers and local communities in the Northeast. The refinery's continued operation carries symbolic and economic weight for the region, which has historically sought greater recognition of its contribution to India's energy output.

For the broader oil sector, ministerial visits to legacy infrastructure send a signal of institutional continuity — that heritage assets will be maintained and celebrated even as the sector modernises. Energy consumers across India, meanwhile, have a stake in the policy balance between sustaining domestic refining capacity and accelerating the shift to renewables and green hydrogen.

What's Next

The Petroleum Ministry is expected to release progress reports on refinery capacity additions and the National Green Hydrogen Mission rollout in upcoming sector reviews. Parliamentary discussions on upstream licensing reforms and Northeast-specific energy projects are also anticipated. The Digboi visit may foreshadow renewed government attention to legacy refining infrastructure in the region, potentially including modernisation or capacity-enhancement announcements tied to India's broader energy security roadmap.