BIHAR Government has begun the process to give Petroleum Exploration License (PEL) to assess the presence of oil reserves in Samastipur and Buxar districts in the State, a top official said on Monday.

The State-owned Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC) Limited has applied for the grant of PELs for Buxar and Samastipur for oil exploration and production under the Open Field Licensing Policy (OALP), additional chief secretary-cum-mines commissioner of Bihar, Harjot Kaur Bamhrah told PTI.

“The exploration process to assess the presence of oil reserves in Samastipur (308.32 sq km) and Buxar (52.13 sq km) in the Ganga basin will start very soon,” she said.