Guwahati: Chief Economic Adviser V Anantha Nageswaran has suggested bringing back E10 petrol as an option for older two-wheelers while retaining E20 fuel, warning that further increases in ethanol blending should be assessed for their impact on food production, agriculture and water resources.
In a column published in The Indian Express, Nageswaran and Department of Economic Affairs consultant Akash Poojari argued that India’s ethanol policy should examine broader economic and environmental implications rather than focus only on the technical performance of E20 petrol.
The authors said any proposal to increase the blending level to E27 or E30 should be preceded by an assessment of the additional agricultural land and water that would be required to produce the necessary ethanol.
India reached its 20% ethanol-blending target ahead of schedule, with the government highlighting benefits including lower crude oil imports, foreign-exchange savings and additional demand for agricultural products.
However, expanding ethanol production could also increase the requirement for feedstocks such as sugarcane, maize, rice and other grains. The authors highlighted maize in particular because it serves both as a raw material for ethanol and as a major source of feed for the poultry and livestock sectors.
A significant rise in ethanol demand could consequently affect crop prices and influence farmers’ cropping decisions, potentially creating competition between fuel requirements and food and animal-feed needs.
The authors also pointed to water use as an important consideration in determining future ethanol-blending targets.
They said policymakers need to account not only for the water consumed at ethanol manufacturing facilities but also for the water required to cultivate crops used as feedstock.
Sugarcane is of particular concern because of its relatively high water requirement. The authors cautioned that once farmland, irrigation resources and cropping patterns become increasingly linked to fuel production, reversing those choices could prove difficult.
Nageswaran and Poojari have proposed making E10 petrol available for older vehicles, especially two-wheelers manufactured before the BS-IV emission standards that use carburettor-based engines.
They estimate that around 75 million to 80 million such two-wheelers remain in use across India.
According to the authors, carburettor engines are generally unable to automatically adjust their air-fuel mixture for the additional oxygen introduced by higher ethanol blends. This can result in a leaner mixture and potentially higher engine temperatures. Older rubber and other components may also have lower compatibility with higher ethanol concentrations.
Although such vehicles can potentially be modified to accommodate higher ethanol blends, upgrading tens of millions of older two-wheelers would take substantial time and resources.
Keeping E10 available could therefore provide these vehicle owners with a lower-blend fuel option during the transition to newer vehicles and technologies.
The Centre has defended E20 petrol, citing testing conducted before its wider rollout and the potential benefits of reducing India’s dependence on imported crude oil. The government has also maintained that there is currently no proposal to increase the blending target beyond 20%.
The CEA’s recommendation does not dismiss the gains associated with ethanol blending. Instead, it calls for a wider evaluation of the consequences before adopting higher targets.
The discussion is consequently expanding beyond vehicle compatibility to the broader question of how India should allocate land, water and agricultural output between fuel production and essential food and feed requirements.
For owners of older two-wheelers, the proposed E10 option could offer a practical transition measure, while the wider ethanol programme may require a careful assessment of its implications for food security, agriculture and water availability before blending is increased beyond E20.