AAP national convenor Arvind Kejriwal on Wednesday alleged that the Centre forced the Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers (SIAM) to withdraw a "report" that, according to him, raised concerns over E20 fuel.
There was no immediate response from SIAM and the Centre on the allegation.
Addressing a press conference, Kejriwal claimed that SIAM submitted the report to the Centre on July 28 stating that E20 fuel contained high levels of chloride and moisture that could damage vehicles.
He alleged that the report was prepared after extensive research by the automobile industry body.
He further claimed that by August 4, the Centre had pressured SIAM to withdraw the report, following which the industry body said the findings required further verification.
"When science and engineering are saying that E20 is harmful, why is the Modi government forcing it on the country?" he asked.
Kejriwal also reiterated his allegation that the rollout of E20 fuel would increase the financial burden on consumers, saying it would lead to higher vehicle maintenance expenses.
SIAM said it had withdrawn a letter written to the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas, which had flagged concerns over contamination of E20 fuel that caused problems with vehicles, due to the need for further authentication.
In a statement, it said the "communication in question" was part of routine and ongoing technical deliberations that take place between various stakeholders, including industry bodies, oil marketing companies, auto OEMs (Original Equipment Manufacturers) and testing agencies.
"Some numbers quoted in the communication need authentication through collection of elaborate data from various regions across the country followed by a comprehensive consultation with our member OEMs," the auto industry body said.
It further said, "The referred numbers reported in the media need authentication as mentioned above and therefore SIAM is withdrawing its earlier communication." According to reports, in the now withdrawn letter, SIAM had noted that investigations revealed that there was corrosion or wear caused by high chloride presence traced to the fuel used in vehicles that suffered issues with E20 fuel, while highlighting the highly detrimental effect of chloride to engine parts.
In its statement, SIAM said, "MoPNG (Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas) has also instituted 3 ppm guidelines for chloride/sulphur as a precautionary measure for all ethanol being blended into the petrol supply chain. All of these steps fully meet the needs of the automobile industry.
Further, it said, "We understand from OMCs that checks have been instituted, including water ingress testing about 8-12 times a day at over 87,000 outlets & after each instance of rain near petrol pumps." Reassuring consumers and the general public that "the automobile industry has always been fully supportive of this initiative of the government of India on E20 which is important from an energy security perspective", SIAM said, adding that "There is no cause for concern arising from the matter reported as these issues have been routinely addressed over the past several decades between auto industry and OMCs."
