'As long as the vehicle has a flex engine, it is irrelevant if the mixture is 15 per cent or 30 per cent; the performance is the same.'
Sugar sector has been buoyed up by high sugar prices and seeks policies to promote ethanol as green fuel in the ensuing Union Budget 2010-11.
The Aam Aadmi Party, led by Arvind Kejriwal, staged a protest in New Delhi against the government's E20 petrol policy, attempting to march to the Prime Minister's residence with over 2.30 lakh petitions from vehicle owners concerned about the ethanol-blended fuel.
A Parliamentary Standing Committee on Commerce has urged the Indian government to swiftly conclude the proposed India-US Bilateral Trade Agreement (BTA), while ensuring India's interests are protected, recommending complete exemption for key export products like generic medicines and smartphones from future US tariff increases.
The Indian government has allocated an additional 2 million tonnes of surplus broken rice from FCI stocks for its ethanol blending programme, while simultaneously issuing a detailed rebuttal to widespread misinformation regarding the E20 fuel, addressing concerns from water consumption to engine damage and environmental impact.
The Uttar Pradesh government announced it has paid a record Rs 3,21,963 crore to sugarcane growers since 2017, emphasising on-time payments and direct transfers to farmers' accounts. The government highlighted initiatives like farm loan waivers and the 'Smart Ganna Kisan' system for online sugarcane management.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi has urged for restraint in the use of petro products due to the West Asia crisis, emphasising the need to save foreign exchange and reduce the impact of war. He also highlighted India's progress in solar power and ethanol blending, while assuring support to Telangana's development.
As of now, no firm has launched a flex-fuel vehicle in India, as these models are more expensive than comparable petrol-run vehicles.
India's biofuel sector witnessed another boost this week with Praj Industries, the Pune-based biofuel technology company, joining an Icrisat-backed consortium to promote ethanol production from sweet sorghum.
The agreement addresses non-tariff barriers and promotes increased trade in technology products and cooperation between the two countries.
'India's farmers will be unable to compete with the US, given the subsidies that the latter provides its farmers.'
'The petrol lobby is very rich and strong.'
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday said India will never compromise the interests of its farmers, fishermen and dairy farmers, asserting that he would be ready to pay any price.
India and the US have decided to hold sector-specific talks in the coming weeks to finalise the structure of the proposed bilateral trade agreement (BTA), the government said on Saturday. The engagement between the two countries came in the backdrop of the USA's threat to impose reciprocal tariffs on its key trading partners, including India, on April 2.
Industry associations and companies in the United States, including the US Chamber of Commerce, Coalition of Services Industries and the iconic bike company Harley Davidson have called on the Donald Trump dispensation to push India to reduce tariffs, non-tariffs, and regulatory barriers to boost American exports.
Sugar sector is buoyed by high sugar prices, and seeks policies to promote ethanol as green fuel in the ensuing Union Budget 2010-11.
Promoting ethanol-friendly cars, turning river Ganga into a waterway and rolling out 50 stalled road projects are three top agendas for him.
India will raise its import duty on sugar to 40 percent from 15 percent, as the government tries to revive business at mills that owe farmers around $1.84 billion, the food minister said on Monday.
Confident of securing a massive majority in the upcoming Lok Sabha elections, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday outlined his vision for his next five-year term saying the Modi 3.0 government will put all its might to strengthen the foundation of 'Viksit Bharat' or a developed nation.
The early morning crackdown against the terror group in Ballari and Bengaluru in Karnataka, Amaravati, Mumbai and Pune in Maharashtra, Jamshedpur and Bokaro in Jharkhand and Delhi, led to the foiling of a plan by the accused to carry out terror acts, especially improvised explosive device blasts.
The Indian promoters of the event, Fairstreet Sports, presented the UP CM, who has been instrumental in paving the way for MotoGP's smooth ride to make its maiden entry into the country, with the first ticket of the historic race.
A flex-fuel or dual fuel vehicle is capable of operating on both petrol and ethanol
Oil Minister Hardeep Singh Puri on Thursday indicated that the much-delayed privatisation of oil major BPCL may not happen in the near future, saying there is "no proposal whatsoever" on his table for now. As part of its asset monetisation plan, the government had in November 2019 put Bharat Petroleum Corporation (BPCL) on the block and said it would completely sell its 52.98 per cent stake in the country's second largest state-run oil refiner and marketer. Though it had received three tentative bids, it got only one financial bid from Vedanta group, forcing it in May 2022 to shelve the plan pending a "comprehensive review".
A proposal in the Union Budget 2022-23 to raise excise duty on dirtier, unblended retail petrol and diesel has met with some resistance from the petroleum ministry. However, finance ministry officials say no such communication arguing against the levy of extra duty on diesel has been received from the oil ministry. Until there are discussions between the two departments, the proposal will not be tweaked in the Finance Bill. The Rs 2 per litre additional excise duty proposed on unblended fuels in the Finance Bill will result in a uniform hike of diesel prices across the country from October 1.
The prohibition has freed up as much as 60 million litres of ethanol
Mobile phones and TV sets manufactured in India would become cheaper with Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman announcing cuts in Basic Customs Duty (BCD) on import of their components but smokers would have to pay more as the government has increased taxes.
Addressing the nation on Independence Day, the prime minister also spoke on renewable energy and the need to maintain a balance between development and the environment. Referring to the National Clean Air Programme (NCAP), launched in January 2019, Modi said, "A special campaign is being worked out to reduce pollution in 100 selected cities with a holistic approach."
The mission has proposed pilot projects for replacing fossil fuels and fossil fuel-based feedstocks with Green Hydrogen and its derivatives.
He said manufacturing ethanol and biogas from waste could result in savings to the tune of Rs 5 lakh crore annually
Giving the slogan of "one earth, many efforts", he said India is ready to lend its support to actions to make environment better and improve global wellness.
India's climate change goals are turning combustible. On the one hand, a protracted dispute between the government and manufacturers over subsidies threatens to slow the pace of electric vehicle (EV) sales. On the other hand, repeated assertions by different arms of the government over banning sales of new fossil fuel-fired vehicles have queered the pitch for energy investments. Before we address the issue of the recommended diesel vehicle ban in the recent report on energy transition, issued months before the next round of global climate talks begin in Dubai in November, let's look at what's at stake.
The increase in MAT rate from 15% to 18% in effective terms to 19.93% from 16.995% would mean higher cash outflow for the companies paying tax at MAT Rate like Balrampur Chini and Bajaj Hindusthan.
Attending a function where former Bharatiya Janata Party president Nitin Gadkari rolled out business plan of his Purti Group, NCP president and Union Agriculture Minister Sharad Pawar said "there are no untouchables in politics".
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday released Rs 20,946 crore to 10.09 crore farmers across India as the 10th installment of financial aid under the PM-KISAN scheme and said there was a need for innovation in agriculture along with promotion of natural farming. Under the Pradhan Mantri Kisan Samman Nidhi (PM-KISAN) scheme, a financial benefit of Rs 6,000 per year is provided to the eligible farmer families, payable in three equal installments of Rs 2,000. The PM-KISAN scheme was announced in the February 2019 Budget.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday alleged that "urban Naxals and anti-development elements" with political backing had stalled the construction of Sardar Sarovar dam on the Narmada river in Gujarat for many years by running a campaign that it would harm the environment.
'We would like to develop Andhra Pradesh into a logistics hub not only for India, but also for South Asia.'
Without directly referring to the farmers' agitation, which entered the 17th day on Saturday, Modi said agriculture reforms as part of government efforts are aimed at removing roadblocks, and the new laws will also bring in technology and investment in the sector.
'This is a huge step in promoting the 'Make in India' mission as this bio-fuel would be produced from Tree Borne Oils sourced from tribal areas and farmers.'
He said he spoke whatever he felt from within and added 'neither I dream it, nor there is any liaisoning, nor any PR'.
