India is set to witness its first street protest over the sale of ethanol-blended petrol. A protest led by entrepreneur Tehseen Poonawalla is planned at Delhi’s Jantar Mantar on Sunday. What if police permission isn’t granted? Poonawalla shares his alternative plan, in a light-hearted manner, but with steely resolve. The debate over ethanol-blended petrol is set to move from social media to the streets in India for the first time, with entrepreneur and television personality Tehseen Poonawalla announcing a protest against the Centre’s E20 fuel rollout at Delhi’s Jantar Mantar at 2 pm on Sunday. Poonawalla warned that if the permission to protest at Jantar Mantar was not allowed, a handful of demonstrators could instead sit outside the residence of Union Minister Nitin Gadkari, who is at the forefront of the ethanol-blending campaign. The protest, organised under the banner “TEAM BHARAT against the Ethanol Scam”, is being billed by its organisers as the first big public demonstration against the “rushed implementation” of the BJP-led Centre’s ethanol-blending policy.
Opposition to E20 petrol has so far largely remained confined to social media, automobile fora and consumer groups, but organisers claim growing public frustration over a drop in mileage and alleged vehicle wear and tear has now pushed the issue onto the streets. Video after video is emerging of people showing how fuel from petrol pumps seem to be “adulterated” and not blended. There are scores of clips in which people are complaining of a big drop in mileage because of ethanol-blended petrol and the damage that the fuel is doing to their vehicles.
The government has denied these claims, with Petroleum Minister Hardeep Singh Puri saying on Thursday that the drop in mileage due to E20 was “minor”. “It is well established that when you have ethanol in a vehicle, which they use in racing cars also, acceleration increases, knocking improves,” said Puri.
For more details: Navamalayalam.com