Cong seeks white paper on gas pipeline projects

Gopal Tiwari, senior spokesperson of the Maharashtra Pradesh Congress, claimed that during Dr Manmohan Singh’s tenure, several schemes and projects for distributing crude oil or primarily natural gas through closed/underground pipelines were discussed, deliberated upon, and partially implemented.

He said among these closed-pipeline projects, the most prominent and widely discussed was the Iran-Pakistan-India (IPI) Gas Pipeline, also known as the Peace Pipeline.

This 2,700 km project was intended to bring natural gas from Iran to India via Pakistan, fulfilling the fuel needs of South Asia, he said.

The Congress demanded that the Modi government release a White Paper regarding the operational status of gas pipeline supply schemes initiated after 2014.

“Significant discussions took place on this during Dr Manmohan Singh’s government (2005-2007).

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh himself had expressed a positive stance, stating in 2006 that he was optimistic about the pipeline, viewing it as vital for the economic progress of India, Iran, and Pakistan.

In 2007, both India and Pakistan supported the project and expressed commitment to moving it forward,” Tiwari said.

However, due to pressure from the United States (in the context of Iran sanctions and the nuclear deal), as well as other geopolitical factors like uncertainty in Iran and banking/financing risks, the project did not materialise and eventually stalled.Tiwari added that if there had been consistency in the country’s foreign policy and ethics, it would have helped maintain peaceful relations with oil-producing nations, accelerated the pace of development, and enabled the country to face disastrous situations more effectively.