Kochi: The Keralam Civil Supplies Department has stepped up inspections of petrol pumps in the state to verify ethanol content in petrol following allegations of excessive ethanol blending in fuel sold at retail outlets, ANI reported.
During an inspection in Kochi, officials collected six one-litre petrol samples, of which two were sent to an analytical chemical laboratory in Kakinada for testing. District Civil Supplies Officer Shaji PR said the department was awaiting the test results.
Separately, Food and Civil Supplies Minister Anoop Jacob has directed officials to collect petrol samples from four districts -Thiruvananthapuram, Ernakulam, Kozhikode and Kannur -and send them to laboratories accredited by the National Accreditation Board for Testing and Calibration Laboratories (NABL). He said action would be taken if excessive ethanol content was detected.
The inspections follow a controversy in Karnataka, where concerns have been raised over petrol allegedly containing more than the prescribed 20% ethanol. Karnataka Minister Rizwan Arshad said the state government had collected 63 samples from different districts and major oil companies to examine the ethanol content.
The Karnataka Department of Food, Civil Supplies, Consumer Affairs and Legal Metrology claimed that petrol samples collected from certain retail outlets contained between 26% and 31% ethanol. The issue has raised concerns about the possible impact of higher ethanol blends on vehicles that are not designed to use such fuel.
Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi also questioned the Centre over allegations that oil companies were supplying petrol with ethanol content exceeding the prescribed limit. He raised concerns about the possible financial losses to vehicle owners.
Centre, oil companies dispute Karnataka’s findings
The Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas has rejected allegations of excessive ethanol blending, stating that all 893 E20 petrol samples tested across 27 states and Union Territories met the prescribed quality standards.
According to the ministry, the samples were tested under the monitoring of the Centre for High Technology (CHT), with ethanol content ranging between 19% and 21%. Of these, 56 samples collected in Karnataka recorded ethanol content between 19% and 20%.
The three public sector oil marketing companies — Indian Oil Corporation, Bharat Petroleum Corporation and Hindustan Petroleum Corporation — have maintained that ethanol blending is carried out through controlled and automated processes in accordance with statutory guidelines.
The companies have also questioned the sampling and testing procedures followed by Karnataka authorities. They have sought access to laboratory reports, sampling records and retained samples for independent verification and proposed joint sampling and testing under prescribed standards.
The developments have brought fuel quality monitoring and compliance with ethanol blending standards into focus as India continues to implement its E20 programme, according to ANI.
