Oil and Natural Gas Corporation Limited (ONGC) is a leading national oil company of  India engaged mainly in exploration, development and production of crude oil, natural gas and some value added products such as Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG), Naphtha etc.

During  the pre-independence  period,  the Assam  Oil Company in the north-eastern  and Attock Oil Company in north western part of the undivided India were the only oil companies  producing   oil  in  the  country,  with   minimal exploration  input.    The major  part  of  Indian  sedimentary basin s was deemed to be unfit for development of oil and gas resources.  After independence, the Government realized the importance of oil and gas for rapid industrial development and  its  strategic role in defence Consequently,   during framing  of  the  industrial  policy  statement  of 1948,  the development  of  petroleum  industry  in  the  country  was considered to be of utmost necessity. In 1955 Oil and Natural Gas Directorate was set up to develop the oil and natural gas resources in the various region of the country as part of the public sector development. In August 1956, the Directorate was raised  to  the  status of  a Commission  with  enhanced powers. In October  1959, the Commission  was converted into a statutory body. ONGC was subsequently converted into a public limited company in June 1993 following the new liberalized economic policy. ONGC was reorganized  as a limited company under the Companies Act 1956 in February 1994.

The corporation is managed by the Board of Directors, which formulates goals, strategies and policies and also reviews the performance on regular basis. The Board has 16 members, comprising of 7 Executive Directors, including the Chairman and Managing Director.

ONGC, since its inception, has been instrumental in transforming the country's limited upstream sector into a large viable playing field, with its activities spread throughout India and significantly in overseas territories. As the highest profit­ making corporation, ONGC has scripted India's hydrocarbon saga by discovering 5 of the 6 basins. ONGC has made 310 hydrocarbon finds within the country and has discovered nearly 6 billion tones of in-place oil and gas reserves in India. ONGC meets 84% of India's domestic production of oil and gas. It has established its competitive edge, by bagging 59 out of the 110 blocks, awarded in the five rounds in the NELP bidding. ONGC is ranked 24'h among Global Energy Companies by Marked Capitalization in PFC Energy 50. It is World's 2"" largest E&P (Exploration & Production) Company; and first in Profits in 3rd Platts EBT Survey (2004). ONGC is placed at the top of all Indian Corporates listed in Forbes Global 2000 (rank 265'h) and Financial Times Global 500 (rank 326'h). It is ranked 454'h in Fortune-500 by turnover.

ONGC's wholly owned subsidiary ONGC Videsh Limited (OVL) is the biggest Indian multi-national, with 18 oil and gas properties in 14 countries. ONGC has institutionalized Research and Development in exploration and production (E&P) and related sectors and established seven separate institutions to undertake specific activities in key areas of exploration, drilling, reservoir management, production technology, ocean engineering etc. ONGC is committed to maintaining high standards of occupational health, safety and environmental protection. It has also well equipped crisis management teams.

The Department of Posts is proud to issue a commemorative postage stamp on Oil and Natural Gas Corporation Limited.

Source : Information Folder issued by Indian Posts & Telegraph Department, Government of India