‘Paid campaign against me’: Nitin Gadkari opens up on E20 petrol backlash

NItin Gadkari, unification government minister for route ship and Highways, on wed accused the petroleum sector of lobbying against the government’s push for ethanol-blended fuel, saying vested interests were trying to stall the transition.“Everywhere there are lobbies, there are interests… petrol lobby is very rich,” Gadkari said, reacting to growing social media concerns over E20 - petrol blended with 20 per cent ethanol. His remarks came at the 65th annual convention of the Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers (SIAM) in New Delhi."The social media campaign was a paid campaign against me. The Supreme Court has also dismissed the petition. There was no fact," he added.The rollout of E20, which began at select fuel stations in April 2023, was expanded nationwide in April 2025. It replaced E10 - petrol with 10 per cent ethanol - that most cars in India currently use. Ethanol is an alcohol mainly derived from sugarcane and food grains such as maize and rice.Debate over fuel efficiencyE20 has triggered debate among consumers and automobile experts, many of whom argue that blending ethanol could hurt vehicles’ efficiency and longevity. Experts told PTI that cars running on E20 may see a 2–5 per cent drop in mileage due to ethanol’s lower calorific value compared to petrol.They also cautioned that older, non-compliant vehicles could suffer long-term wear and tear on fuel pipes, gaskets and rubber hoses.However, the oil ministry has dismissed “drastic” efficiency loss claims as exaggerated. In an August 4 post on X, it said: “Ethanol, being lower in energy density than petrol, results in a marginal decrease in mileage, estimated at 1–2 per cent for four-wheelers designed for E10 and calibrated for E20, and around 3–6 per cent in others.” The ministry added that several automakers had already made their models E20-compatible since 2009.Cutting imports, boosting farmersNitin Gadkari defended the ethanol programme as part of a broader strategy to reduce India’s reliance on imported crude oil, which makes up 88 per cent of the country’s needs. “We have an import of ₹22 lakh crore. Is it not appropriate that we have to make in India with our own strength? We can stand on our own strength. So we are working on that,” he said at the 7th Auto Retail Conclave of the Federation of Automobile Dealers Associations (FADA).The minister said the programme was designed not just to cut emissions and save foreign exchange, but also to raise farmers’ incomes by increasing demand for sugarcane and grain-based ethanol.Looking beyond ethanolGadkari also underlined the need to diversify India’s fuel basket beyond ethanol. “We want to concentrate on alternative fuel, biofuel, hydrogen, electric — whatever the choice may be, even in the marine engine. Now we are planning to use methanol,” he said, adding that experiments with ethanol and isobutanol are also underway.India is the world’s third-largest oil consumer, leaving it exposed to global price shocks. Gadkari reiterated that the shift to alternative fuels was crucial to energy security and economic independence.