India’s E20 (20 per cent ethanol-blended petrol) policy is being projected as a triumph. Achieved ahead of the original 2030 target, the ethanol-blending programme has, we are told, reduced millions of tonnes of carbon emissions and saved over a trillion rupees in crude oil imports. What’s not to like?

But public policy cannot be judged only by what it does for the exchequer. It must also be judged by what it does to ordinary citizens, especially when they have no meaningful choice in the matter. That is where the E20 rollout fails a basic test of democratic fairness: consent.

More than 80 per cent of petrol vehicles on Indian roads were built before 2023 and designed primarily for E10 or lower ethanol blends. Their owners had no clue what was coming — a fuel their engines were not built for. They simply woke up to find E0 and E10 disappearing from pumps in many places. A consumer who paid full price, and often steep taxes, for a vehicle rated for a certain fuel standard now has no legal way to buy that standard of fuel.

This is not a consensual move towards cleaner energy — it’s the removal of choice dressed up as inevitability, with little clear labelling, no meaningful colour-coding and often no other option at the counter.

The technical concerns are not imaginary. A study by the Automotive Research Association of India (ARAI), though not fully made public, reportedly found that using E20 in E10-compatible vehicles could lead to deterioration of rubber fuel-system components such as hoses, gaskets, seals and O-rings. The summary of the report also noted that some parts might require replacement. These findings align with concerns repeatedly expressed by owners of pre-2023........

© National Herald