Now Reading: Carmakers flagged E20 contamination concerns before SIAM withdrew complaint
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Carmakers flagged E20 contamination concerns before SIAM withdrew complaint
Carmakers flagged E20 contamination concerns before SIAM withdrew complaint
Maruti Suzuki, Tata Motors and Mahindra privately raised concerns about chloride and moisture contamination in E20 petrol before the Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers withdrew a public complaint, The Hindu reports. Industry…
The Story in Brief
Maruti Suzuki, Tata Motors and Mahindra privately raised concerns about chloride and moisture contamination in E20 petrol before the Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers withdrew a public complaint, The Hindu reports. Industry executives said they had tested more than 250 fuel samples collected over a year from up to 21 States and Union Territories. High chloride levels were found in samples from 18 States, while moisture readings also exceeded government benchmarks in some areas.
SIAM said the data was preliminary, had insufficient sample size and needed validation. Petroleum Minister Hardeep Singh Puri said oil companies found only four contamination cases through their own tests. Mahindra rejected conclusions drawn from the emails, while Maruti and Tata did not comment. The source report says motorists have also complained of lower mileage and vehicle wear since E20 became the only petrol option nationwide.
The Indian Opinion
The loudest claims on E20 are running ahead of the evidence. It is too early to declare the fuel broadly dangerous, but dismissing motorists’ complaints or the industry data as mere alarmism is equally careless. The key issue is not loyalty to ethanol or petrol, but testing quality and accountability across pumps, storage tanks and vehicles. A transparent, independent study should publish location-wise results, especially chloride readings against the 3 ppm limit. That number can separate a local maintenance failure from a nationwide fuel problem.
Sources (2): thehindu.com, dnaindia.com
This story was synthesised by AI from the 2 sources linked above.
