<p>Guwahati: The ONGC on Sunday asked residents living near the gas well in Assam's Sivasagar district, which blew out on June 12, to resume their normal activities as the US experts took steps to cap the well. </p><p>"Air quality monitoring continues uninterrupted in and around the site. Encouragingly, there is no detectable trace of hydrocarbons beyond 30 metres from the well. </p><p>"Based on current assessments, residents living beyond a 500-metre radius from the incident site have now been advised that it is safe to return to their homes and resume normal activities, including cooking and the use of electricity," ONGC said in a statement.</p> .Villagers living under fear after gas leak as ONGC awaits US experts to control Assam gas well blowout.<p>More than 300 residents in Bhatiapar village were earlier provided shelters as panic gripped the area following the blowout resulting in continuous leak of gas from the well.</p> .<p><strong>US experts on site</strong></p><p>The ONGC said a team of oil control experts from the US-based Cudd Pressure Control on Sunday achieved a "significant milestone" in its operation to cap the well. </p><p>"Approximately 10 trailer loads of rig material has been successfully removed by ONGC’s Crisis Management Team and the expert crew, clearing the majority of the rig equipment from the site and paving the way for the upcoming well capping operation. </p><p>The necessary heavy equipment required for the capping process is currently being mobilised to the site," the ONGC said.</p><p>The ONGC had to rope in the US experts as efforts by their technical team failed to stop the gas leak, increasing fear of the local residents. Assam CM Himanta Biswa Sarma, who visited the site on July 24, expressed unhappiness over the efforts. Sarma had even written to the union petroleum minister Hardeep Singh Puri criticising the ONGC's steps and sought his intervention to control the situation.</p>
<p>Guwahati: The ONGC on Sunday asked residents living near the gas well in Assam's Sivasagar district, which blew out on June 12, to resume their normal activities as the US experts took steps to cap the well. </p><p>"Air quality monitoring continues uninterrupted in and around the site. Encouragingly, there is no detectable trace of hydrocarbons beyond 30 metres from the well. </p><p>"Based on current assessments, residents living beyond a 500-metre radius from the incident site have now been advised that it is safe to return to their homes and resume normal activities, including cooking and the use of electricity," ONGC said in a statement.</p> .Villagers living under fear after gas leak as ONGC awaits US experts to control Assam gas well blowout.<p>More than 300 residents in Bhatiapar village were earlier provided shelters as panic gripped the area following the blowout resulting in continuous leak of gas from the well.</p> .<p><strong>US experts on site</strong></p><p>The ONGC said a team of oil control experts from the US-based Cudd Pressure Control on Sunday achieved a "significant milestone" in its operation to cap the well. </p><p>"Approximately 10 trailer loads of rig material has been successfully removed by ONGC’s Crisis Management Team and the expert crew, clearing the majority of the rig equipment from the site and paving the way for the upcoming well capping operation. </p><p>The necessary heavy equipment required for the capping process is currently being mobilised to the site," the ONGC said.</p><p>The ONGC had to rope in the US experts as efforts by their technical team failed to stop the gas leak, increasing fear of the local residents. Assam CM Himanta Biswa Sarma, who visited the site on July 24, expressed unhappiness over the efforts. Sarma had even written to the union petroleum minister Hardeep Singh Puri criticising the ONGC's steps and sought his intervention to control the situation.</p>