Gadkari For Faster Adoption Of Clean Fuels, And Reduction In Crude Imports, Thereby 'Disempowering Terror Financiers'

Pitching strongly for faster adoption of alternative fuels for vehicles, Union Road Transport Minister Nitin Gadkari said a section of those who have made good profit from the sale of crude oil provide “funds” for terrorism and maintained that reducing the import and use of petroleum products will address “several” concerns of India.

Addressing a business meet organised by International Vaish Federation in the capital, the minister said he has kept his promise to the then RSS Sarsanghchalak, K S Sudarshan, that he would continue the campaign for reducing imports and increase exports and he continues to do so.

“This is a Swadeshi and nationalist approach. Why should we import? People who have become wealthy by selling diesel and petrol have also financed the terrorists. We are number three in the import of petrol and diesel in the world. If we stop importing these, we will find solutions to many of our problems,” Gadkari said.

The minister also said how India currently spends nearly Rs 8 lakh crore on the import of diesel and petrol, which may increase to Rs 25 lakh crore in the next five years, if the trend continues.

He further said diesel is the worst fuel for the environment as he urged the investors to take interest in manufacturing ethanol and other cleaner and indigenous fuels to reduce dependence on import of the crude oil.

Gadkari said his ministry will soon come out with the policy on flex fuel engines for petrol vehicles in the next 6-8 months.

He said all car and two-wheeler manufacturers will have to go for flex engines and the cost won’t increase much. “We will ask all the vehicle manufacturers to make flex fuel engines that comply with the Euro-VI or BS-VI emission norms.”

Earlier, the government was considering the import of flex fuel engines from Brazil, which are at par with the BS-IV vehicles, after obtaining prior permission from the Supreme Court.

The apex court has turned down pleas for registration of BS-IV compliant vehicles. Last week, the minister had said Vikram Kirloskar of Toyota-Kirloskar Motors had informed him that they were ready to launch Euro-VI-compliant flex engines that can run either on 100 per cent petrol or 100 per cent ethanol.