A major fire broke out on April 21, 2026 in the Crude Distillation Unit of the HPCL Rajasthan Refinery Limited (HRRL) complex at Pachpadra in Balotra district of Rajasthan, forcing the postponement of the formal dedication of the refinery by Prime Minister Narendra Modi which had been scheduled for the same day. The blaze originated in the heat-exchanger circuit of the CDU section, with prima facie findings indicating a hydrocarbon leak from a valve flange. HPCL confirmed that the fire was localised within the heat-exchanger stack and that other units were quickly isolated and remained structurally safe and unaffected. There was no loss of life or injury to any personnel. Rajasthan Chief Minister Bhajanlal Sharma travelled to the site, called the incident unfortunate, ordered a detailed high-level probe and assured full state support to restore operations at the earliest. The Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas constituted a separate inquiry panel and HPCL launched its own technical investigation. Investigators are also examining CCTV footage given the proximity to the planned PM event. The Pachpadra refinery is described as India's first greenfield integrated refinery-cum-petrochemical complex with a revised cabinet-approved cost of ₹79,459 crore and a 9 million tonnes per annum crude processing capacity. A new date for the inauguration is to be announced by the Prime Minister's Office. The HPCL-Rajasthan government 74:26 joint venture began work on the project in 2018 and the scheduled commercial operation date stands at July 1, 2026.