Pachpadra refinery: PM Modi blames Congress for delay, Ashok Gehlot calls it 'misleading'

Pachpadra/Jaipur: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday blamed the previous Congress government in Rajasthan for the delay in the Pachpadra refinery project, but former chief minister Ashok Gehlot dismissed the remarks as "misleading" and claimed 85 per cent of the project was completed during the Congress rule.

After dedicating the country's first greenfield integrated refinery-cum-petrochemical complex to the nation in Rajasthan's Balotra area, Modi said an agreement for the project had been signed in 2017, but the work slowed considerably under the Congress government in Rajasthan between 2018 and 2023.

"Because of the Congress government's lack of cooperation, work on the project almost came to a standstill. After the double-engine government came to power, work gathered pace. Today we are dedicating the project to the nation. We not only lay foundation stones but also complete and inaugurate projects," he said.


In a statement, Gehlot said it was "unfortunate" that the prime minister behaved like a BJP leader even during official programmes and was making "misleading" statements at a government function.

"These claims sound ridiculous. The prime minister should have spoken to people associated with the refinery project," the senior Congress leader said.

He asserted that despite challenges such as the COVID-19 pandemic, work on the refinery did not stop during the Congress government and nearly 85 per cent of the project was completed between 2018 and 2023.

Gehlot claimed that the BJP government itself had announced in its budget that the refinery work would be completed by August 2025, indicating that the project had been delayed by about a year.

The former chief minister said such statements at official events were inappropriate and did not reflect the actual progress of the project.

Earlier in the day, Gehlot termed the commissioning of the state's first petrochemical refinery a "historic day" and said the project was conceived and initiated during the Congress regime.

Gehlot said serious efforts to set up a refinery in Rajasthan began after the Congress came to power in the state in 2008.

He credited former UPA chairperson Sonia Gandhi and former prime minister Manmohan Singh for extending support to the project, and former petroleum ministers Murli Deora and Veerappa Moily for helping secure the refinery.

The former Rajasthan chief minister said the refinery was inaugurated in 2013 by Sonia Gandhi and Moily and alleged that work was stalled for five years due to political reasons, leading to an escalation in project costs.

"Work on the refinery was revived on priority after the Congress returned to power in Rajasthan in 2018 and nearly 85 per cent of the project was completed during the Congress government's tenure despite challenges posed by the COVID-19 pandemic," he said.

Gehlot said that the Congress's vision extended beyond the refinery to a petrochemical zone, for which even land was allotted.

"The Congress government envisioned establishing a petrochemical zone alongside the refinery, featuring plastic-based industries that would utilise the refinery's by-products and generate lakhs of new jobs. Although land was allocated for this project during the Congress government's tenure, it has since been put on the back burner," he said.

Gehlot said that with the inauguration of the refinery today, work on this petrochemical zone should be fast-tracked and the project reserved for the people of Rajasthan.

"This would ensure that local residents, rather than outside business people, are given priority in setting up plastic-based industries and securing employment," he said.