<P> Oil in colonial India was mostly exploited by a number of British companies with intricate alliances . Their output began to increase during the first and second world wars to support British troops and industries in the United Kingdom . </P> <P> In 1928, Asiatic Petroleum Company (India) started cooperation with Burmah Oil Company . This alliance led to the formation of Burmah - Shell Oil Storage and Distributing Company of India Limited . Burmah - Shell began its operations with import and marketing of Kerosene . On 24th of January, 1976, the Burmah Sell was taken over by the Government of India to form Bharat Refineries Limited . On 1st August, 1977, it was renamed as Bharat Petroleum Corporation Limited . </P> <P> After India won independence in 1947, the new government moved to a Communist system, often termed as License Raj . In terms of economic policy this meant a far bigger role for the government and little or no role for the private sector . This resulted in a focus on centralized planning, heavily bureaucratic and inefficient system that meant a large public sector and economic protectionism . </P> <P> The foreign companies continued to play a key role in the oil industry . Oil India Limited was still a joint venture involving the Indian government and the British owned Burmah Oil Company (presently, BP) whilst the Indo - Stanvac Petroleum project in West Bengal was between the Indian government and the American company SOCONY - Vacuum (presently, ExxonMobil). This changed in 1956 when the government adopted an industrial policy that placed oil as a "schedule A industry" and put its future development in the hands of the state . In October 1959 an Act of Parliament was passed which gave the state owned Oil and Natural Gas Commission (ONGC) the powers to plan, organise, and implement programmes for the development of oil resources and the sale of petroleum products and also to perform plans sent down from central government . </P>

Which freedom fighter know as the father of the indian petroleum industry