The first of its kind National Seminar on Standardisation in Oil & Gas Sector was organised jointly by Petroleum Federation of India (PetroFed), Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) and Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Limited (HPCL) on February 14, 2007 at New Delhi to prepare a roadmap for harmonisation with global international standards to facilitate international trade and commerce.

Inaugurating the Seminar Shri M. S. Srinivasan, Secretary, Ministry of Petroleum & Natural Gas drew vivid examples to highlight the importance of standardisation and harmonisation with international standards in general, and Oil & Gas sector in particular. It was high time, he said, that concerted efforts were made in this area and complimented the organisers for taking this initiative.

In his presidential address, Shri Y. S. Bhave, Secretary, Ministry of Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution spoke of the need to adopt standards best suited to Indian conditions.

Mrs. Alka Sirohi, Additional Secretary, Ministry of Consumer Affairs and Director General, Bureau of Indian Standards cited the example of increasing thermal efficiency standards in domestic LPG hot plates as an enabler in not only energy and monetary savings for households but as a means of national saving.

Shri U. D. Choubey, CMD, GAIL highlighted the fact that with the vast growth anticipated in natural gas and LNG there was an urgent need to develop Indian standards in its various facets.

The Seminar was divided into two major technical sessions and a panel discussion thereafter chaired by Director General, PetroFed, Shri A. K. Arora. Both technical sessions featured detailed presentations by Mr. Alain Samne, Technical Group Manager, Engineering, Machinery and Energy, ISO, Central Secretariat, Geneva who had been specially invited to focus on harmonisation with international standards and facilitate discussion on the same with the nearly five score technical personnel from various aspects of the Oil & Gas industry present in the Seminar.

The first technical session chaired by Shri K. P. Shahi, Advisor (Technical), RIL featured presentations by Dr. D. K. Chaudhuri, SC ‘F” & Head (PCD), BIS and Dr. R.K. Malhotra, GM, IOC (R&D) on, standardizations activity by BIS in the Petroleum Industry and ‘Evolution and future roadmap of POL standardisation in India' respectively.

The second technical session chaired by Shri K. Murali, Executive Director, HPCL & Chairman of PCD 3 committee of BIS featured presentations by Dr. M. O. Garg, Director, IIP and Shri R. A. Rao, Former Advisor, IAL on ‘Harmonisation of test methods in Oil and Gas sector in India with Global Standards' and ‘Importance of India's participation in the International standardization activities in Oil & Gas sector' respectively.

The panel discussion featured not only the speakers but also Shri K. K. Gandhi, Executive Director, Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers (SIAM).

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