Oil spills have become a major concern on the global stage, especially in industrialized and developing countries, as petroleum hydrocarbons are toxic to almost all life forms, giving rise to Environmental Pollution at a massive scale. Human Activities and natural oil seepage are determined as the major reason for soil and water pollution. Petrol and Diesel contaminated soil samples were collected from Fuel stations around Bangalore. Using 0.5% petrol in Bushnell-Hass Mineral Salt Medium, the microbial samples were tested for their capabilities to degrade petroleum oil. It was later proven and concluded that three microbial strains, namely, BLR-I, BLR-II, BLR-III out of the nine obtained strains were found to be better potent as compared to the rest. The rate of biodegradation considerably depends upon the make-up and concentration of hydrocarbons. Temperature, oxygen levels, etc. are variables in rate of biodegradation.

Keywords: Environmental pollution, Hydrocarbon degradation, Bushnell-Hass mineral salt medium