Gadkari Stands by Ethanol-Blending Programme Amid Vehicle Damage Claims
Union Minister Nitin Gadkari defended the Centre's ethanol-blending programme, dismissing claims that petrol mixed with ethanol damages vehicles. He said the policy aims to diversify agriculture by creating an additional market for farm produce.
Gadkari cited figures showing that over 4 crore four-wheelers and 20 crore two-wheelers had been running on petrol blended with ethanol since 2022, without any complaints of damage. He challenged anyone to come up with evidence of vehicle damage caused by ethanol-blended fuel.
The minister emphasized that the decision to blend ethanol with petrol was taken to diversify the agriculture sector towards energy and power sectors. 'Our farmers shall no longer remain 'anna data' (food producers) but also become 'urja data' (energy producers)', he said.
Gadkari noted that leading automobile manufacturers had tested vehicles running on 100% ethanol, with no complaints. He claimed that the use of corn for ethanol had created additional earnings for farmers in Bihar and Uttar Pradesh, reaching up to Rs 45,000 crore.