E20 Achieved - India's Ethanol Programme
India now sells petrol blended with 20% ethanol (E20) nationwide, hitting a target it once set for 2030 and later pulled forward to Ethanol Supply Year 2025-26 — a turnaround from barely 1.5% blending in 2014. The Ethanol Blended Petrol programme trims crude imports, pays farmers and distillers, and cuts tailpipe carbon, but has drawn debate over diverting grain to fuel and whether E20 dents mileage or harms older engines. Parliament was told on 24 July 2026 that the blend will not rise beyond E20 for now; on 8 August 2026 the state oil marketing companies published nationwide test results rejecting reports of chloride and moisture contamination in the fuel.
- ethanol blending
- E20
- EBP programme
- biofuels
- Hardeep Singh Puri
- flex-fuel
- food vs fuel
- MoPNG
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