After about a year-long stalemate in talks with Bangladesh, and Myanmar's threat to sell its gas to other countries, India has decided to import the gas from two Myanmarese offshore blocks without touching Bangladesh territory.

The state-owned Gas Authority of India Limited (GAIL) has asked a private company to conduct the feasibility studies to transport the gas from Myanmar to be received at Patna, official sources said.

ONGC Videsh Ltd has already taken 20 percent stake and GAIL 10 percent in two blocks of SHWE offshore gas fields in Myanmar. One of these blocks is to start supplying gas to India from 2009.

Another study has been commissioned to assess feasibility of transporting the gas in the form of compressed natural gas (CNG) bypassing Bangladesh, they said.

The reports of the studies are likely by next month, the sources said.

The government took the step as Myanmar raised doubts over India's seriousness in the project and sought "clarifications" urgently on how India proposed to move ahead.

Myanmar has threatened that if India does not decide on the project fast, it would consider selling its gas to some other countries like China and Thailand.

According to an understanding between India, Myanmar and Bangladesh, the construction of an 800-kilometre pipeline was scheduled to start this year. The project was estimated to cost about $2.5 billion (approx Rs 12,000 crore) and gas was to be delivered from 2009.

However, the project got entangled in delay because of Bangladesh's insistence that India meet its certain demands before it allows passage of the hydrocarbon through its territory, the sources said.

Bangladesh demanded duty-free access of its goods to India and transit facility for its goods to Nepal and Bhutan. India however says Bangladesh already has transit facility for its goods to Nepal and Bhutan.

With regard to the duty-free access to Bangladeshi goods, India says it has already given concessions on import of many of the items from the neighbouring country. India cannot give across-the-board concessions, they said.

India argues giving across-the-board concessions could have an adverse impact on domestic industry in certain sectors. Besides, the facility can be misused with some other countries routing their products under this garb.

The sources said this issue was being addressed under the South Asian Free Trade Area (Safta).