Our Bureau
New Delhi
Minister of Road Transport and Highways of India, Nitin Gadkari has finally talked about the controversy going around E20 petrol. Gadkari was at an event of Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers (SIAM) where he made some controversial remarks while addressing the whole situation stating that the social media outrage was a paid campaign designed to target him.
He said, “The social media campaign against E20 was a paid campaign, a political campaign against me.”
The remarks made by Nitin Gadkari were in response to the huge confusion and fear automobile users had regarding the potential negative impact of E20 fuel on older vehicles. At the SIAM event, the minister also stated that by using Ethanol the country has saved thousands of crores for the country and that Ethanol blending is changing the livelihood of farmers for good. He even added that Ethanol is also helping India to reduce pollution in the country.
E20 petrol in India was introduced more than a year ago in April 2024 and has now finally been rolled out across the nation. The fuel is known as E20 because the fuel is blended with 20% Ethanol which is much more than the previously used E10 and E5, which used 10% and 5% of Ethanol mix. Ethanol is mainly produced from sugarcane and grains such as maize and rice.
Five years ago in 2020, the Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers (SIAM) had stated that the government should look forward to providing E10 alongside E20 fuel. This is so that they can make sure the vehicles are operating safely.
They also added that changing parts in older vehicles is going to be a “mammoth task” in itself. Gadkari also noted that air pollution is the biggest challenge for the country and that the auto sector is one of the biggest polluters so bringing in Ethanol will help out in the long run.
