The US-led war in Iraq is unlikely to impact India's oil supplies as state-owned firms have stocked enough supplies of crude oil and petroleum products to meet the country's two months' requirement.

"The country will not face shortage as stocks of crude oil and petroleum products are enough to meet two months requirement," highly placed government sources said.

Within an hour of US fighter planes striking Baghdad, petroleum secretary B K Chaturvedi reviewed the stock position of crude oil and petroleum production.

"We are on a high alert and are closely monitoring the developments in Iraq," they said while anticipating a short and swift war, which would not have any major impact on crude prices.

Global crude oil prices have started to decline and the trend was likely to continue if the war ends fast.

While the country has 12 days' stocks of crude oil and another 11 days requirement in transit, it was highly unlikely that the supply sources worldwide may dry up.

"At the most, we anticipate that the Iraqi output may be impacted but other sources would continue to pump oil," they said.

India imports only less than 5 per cent of its crude oil requirement of 78.7 million tonnes from Iraq and alternate arrangements have been made to meet that requirement, sources said while pointing out that state-owned oil companies have placed advance contracts with countries beyond the conflict zone in the Middle-East.

Meanwhile, public sector refineries and oil fields have postponed planned maintenance shutdown till end of the war so as to ensure no shortage takes place.

Sources said state-owned oil firms are maintaining 53 days' Aviation Turbine Fuel stock. Besides, the 23 days of crude oil, available inventory would provide for additional coverage of 34 days.

Stock of petrol and diesel are enough to meet the country's requirement for 33 days while kerosene stocks are
sufficient for 29.

Oil firms have resorted to heavy imports of domestic cooking gas (LPG) to take the total inventory to 12 days.
Three days' LPG stocks are in transit.

Sources said crude stockpile was enough to meet 12 days requirement of refineries while another 11 days requirement
was in transit.

While India imported 3.8 million tonnes of crude oil from Iraq in 2001-02 (2.718 million tonnes by Reliance Petroleum,
0.9 million tonnes by oil PSUs and remaining by MRPL), the imports from the crisis hit country during the first six
months of current fiscal were 2.646 million tonnes.

Unlike last year, bulk of imports from Iraq this year have been by oil PSUs (2.217 million tonnes) with RPL cutting
its dependence on Iraq to just 429,000 tonnes in April-October 2002, sources said.