(ET)
Police in Rajasthan have cracked a criminal syndicate accused of smuggling more than 50 million litres of crude oil inside water tankers from India’s largest onshore oilfield, an official said Sunday.
The theft at the Cairn India oilfield went undetected for nearly six years until police in the western desert state arrested 25 people this week for involvement in the sophisticated smuggling network.
Local media reported $7.75 million worth of oil could have been stolen in total from the oilfield run by a subsidiary of British mining giant Vedanta Resources. More than 75 people, many drivers and contractors working at the oilfield, are still wanted in connection with the heists, said district police chief Gangandeep Singla.
