Petroleum and Natural Gas Minister Hardeep Singh Puri today said that India is witnessing a renewed surge in oil and gas exploration, particularly in offshore regions. He said that this achievement underscored the country’s vast untapped hydrocarbon potential. In a written reply to a starred question in Rajya Sabha, Mr Puri stated that the opening of nearly one million square kilometres of erstwhile ‘No-Go’ offshore areas in 2022 has been a landmark development. The minister added that this move has unlocked significant exploration frontiers, especially in deepwater and frontier regions such as the Andaman-Nicobar offshore basin, and has been instrumental in triggering the current momentum in offshore activity. He further highlighted that since 2015, Exploration and Production companies operating in India have reported 172 hydrocarbon discoveries, including 62 in offshore areas.