The defence ministry has declared Reliance Industries and its partner BP plc's KG-D6 oil & gas block a "no-go" area as it overlaps with a proposed naval base, sources privy to the development revealed.

According to the sources, RIL-BP's KG-D6 oil & gas block is one of the 14 blocks that have been classified as no-go areas. The ministry of defence has either withdrawn or withheld approvals for a total of 47 oil & gas blocks.

RIL-BP's KG-D6 block has been declared as a no-go area as it overlaps with the Indian Navy a new secretive strategic base on the east coast.

In December, The Telegraph had reported that the Indian Navy was making preparations to commission a new secretive strategic base on the east coast in 2013.

The new strategic base, Project Varsha, would serve as the home port for the warships sailing to the South China Sea, Southeast Asia, and the Pacific. Located at Ramkonda, nearly 50 kilometers south of the Eastern Naval Command's Visakhapatnam-based headquarters, the project is spread over 20 square kilometers.

However, it is yet unclear whether it is the Project Varsha that has cast a cloud of uncertainty over the RIL-BP's KG-D6 block.

KG-D6 block was awarded to RIL in the year of 2000 by the cabinet following it obtained clearances from all ministries concerned. The block has been producing oil since September 2008 and gas since April 2009.