New Delhi, Oct. 1 -- The government has proposed a major overhaul of the penalty framework under the Petroleum Act, 1934, seeking to take routine licence-related violations out of the criminal law framework while introducing steeper penalties for serious offences.

The Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas on Wednesday released the draft Petroleum (Amendment) Bill, 2026, for public and stakeholder consultation. Comments and suggestions on the proposed legislation can be submitted until October 30.

One of the main proposals is to treat breaches of licence terms and conditions as regulatory violations rather than criminal offences.

Under the proposed Section 23C, an adjudicating officer could impose a civil penalty of up to Rs.2.5 crore f...