The debate regarding ethanol blended petrol has started once again in the country and the reason for this debate is a demand of the Chief Economic Advisor (CEA) of the Government of India.
Now V Ananth Nageswaran, Chief Economic Advisor to the Government of India, has advocated bringing back E10 petrol for old vehicles.
This demand of a senior government official has come at a time when petrol mixed with 20 percent ethanol, which is called E20, is being sold across the country from April 1, 2026.
Regarding this petrol, many vehicle consumers had claimed that it is affecting the mileage and performance of their vehicles. However, the Indian government and many experts in the auto industry had rejected these claims.
Opposition leaders and journalists have expressed their views on Nageswaran's statement on social media.
Former Delhi Chief Minister and Aam Aadmi Party convenor Arvind Kejriwal has asked Prime Minister Narendra Modi whether he will change his Chief Economic Advisor now?
What did Nageswaran write in the article?
V Ananth Nageswaran and Akash Pujari, Consultant in the Department of Economic Affairs, have together written an article in The Indian Express.
The article is titled, "Bring back E10 for older vehicles. Consider the balance between food and fuel."
But both of them have made it clear from the very beginning that they reject the idea of E20 damaging the engine.
He said, "The evidence does not support the possibility of engine damage. Ethanol has about two-thirds the energy of petrol, so a liter of E20 will take you a little less distance, but this reduction is minor and does not indicate any defect."
"Ethanol is only one fifth of the mix, so the energy reduction is around 6 to 7 percent, not 30 percent as is being promoted online."
According to the article, the real debate goes beyond engines to farming and food security.
At present, half of India's ethanol is being supplied from corn. Government subsidies and fixed prices for maize are making it more attractive to farmers than oilseed crops like soybean and mustard.
The use of water in ethanol production has also been a subject of controversy.
Referring to this, he wrote, "The commonly reported figures mix two completely different things. Green water i.e. rain water and blue water i.e. water from rivers, canals, groundwater pumps and wells."
"The real shortage is blue water. Sugarcane in Maharashtra and Karnataka draws huge amounts of water from already stressed water sources. Therefore, water regulations should target blue water use rather than alarming aggregate figures."
"The climate argument is also not entirely clear. Beyond E20, all blending will come almost entirely from grain, and studies conducted in India have not been unanimous on whether grain-based ethanol is cleaner than other alternatives after accounting for farming and processing. So the environmental argument in favor of moving forward may not hold up to much scientific scrutiny."
The article lists the benefits of the ethanol program, "It has reduced sugar surplus, increased rural incomes and created an assured market."
But the suggestions given at the end of this article are much discussed.
The article recommends, "Reintroducing low-blend fuels like E10 for older vehicles. Addressing price and water constraints that inadvertently favor corn over other crops."
"Import duty on edible oil should be reviewed again to support the move towards domestic self-reliance. E20 should be maintained until India assesses the full cost of this food vs fuel trade-off. This question should not be ignored."
What is being said on social media?
Aam Aadmi Party leader Arvind Kejriwal wrote on Twitter, "The Chief Economic Advisor of the Modi government is advocating E10 for old vehicles."
"Will Modi ji listen? Or will he change the Chief Economic Advisor, as he always does with those who have different opinions?"
Political analyst Tehseen Poonawala, who has been continuously raising his voice against E20 petrol, has written on X that "E10 petrol should be made available for E10 compliant vehicles. Now the Chief Economic Advisors of the Central Government have said the same thing."
He said, "We are not against the ethanol policy. We are essentially against the mandatory blending of ethanol, especially Ethanol-20 petrol. Our first demand is that 80-90 percent of the vehicles on the road are E10 compliant, give them E10 petrol."
"The second demand is to reduce the price of E0 petrol, which is currently being sold at Rs 165-170 per litre, to Rs 90 per litre. The third demand is to give 20 per cent discount on E20 petrol and make it Rs 78 per litre. Fourth, make all the documents of the E20 petrol policy public. Fifth, find a solution for those vehicles which have faced problems with E20 petrol."
Journalist Shireen Bhan shared parts of Ananth Nageswaran's article on
While sharing the page of the article, Ajit Anjum wrote on X, "This article by Nageswaran, Chief Economic Advisor of Modi Government, is a slap on the face of the government."
Sanket Upadhyay wrote, "When even the Chief Economic Advisor of the country starts saying that E10 petrol should come back, then understand that your fear, your concern was right. It is a matter of choice. Hopefully the government will listen to itself."
Should both E10 and E20 be sold at petrol pumps?
Last month, E20 petrol was discussed in BBC News Hindi's weekly program 'The Lens'. During this, petroleum matters expert Narendra Taneja said that it is very difficult practically and economically to set up separate systems for both E10 and E20 at petrol pumps.
He said that the policy of implementing ethanol fuel in India cannot be compared with Brazil, where consumers have the option to choose the fuel.
"There are more than one lakh petrol pumps in the country. If both the fuels were to be made available in parallel, separate storage tanks, separate tankers, separate distribution systems and additional training would be required. The cost would have been huge."
He says that if the government spends on the option of ethanol blend petrol, then the potential savings that can be achieved from E20 fuel will not be there.
Also, they argue that the share of petrol in liquid fuel is only 16-17 percent while that of diesel is 40 percent and blending of diesel is not happening yet, hence the effect is less.
On the other hand, auto expert Amit Khare believes that if common consumers had the option of ten and twenty percent ethanol mixed petrol, then a large number of old vehicles would not have to face the current problems.
He also says that it was possible for the government to provide these two options. He said that many petrol pumps had replaced some of their premium fuel options during the implementation of E20.
E10 supply could be continued at the same dispensers. He says that this did not require major infrastructure changes, only changes in fuel supply and labeling.
