SC to hear plea for mandatory ethanol percentage labelling at petrol pumps on Aug 31
The Supreme Court will hear on August 31 a plea seeking mandatory disclosure of ethanol content on petrol-pump nozzles and fuel invoices. It also seeks a vehicle-wise E20 compatibility database, an independent expert review of E20 impacts, consumer safeguards, policy transparency and a transition framework for older vehicles.
New Delhi : The Supreme Court is scheduled to hear on August 31 a petition seeking a directive to the Centre and other authorities to ensure mandatory and uniform labelling on every petrol pump dispensing nozzle disclosing the exact percentage of ethanol blended in petrol, The Times of India reported.
According to the apex court’s causelist for August 31, the plea would come up before a bench comprising Justices M M Sundresh and Prasanna B Varale. The petition was filed by Narendra Kumar Goswami.
The plea has also sought a direction that every fuel invoice specifically and legibly state the percentage of ethanol in the petrol sold. It asked the court to direct the respondents to prepare and publish, within a stipulated time, an official and publicly searchable vehicle-wise compatibility database, indicating the suitability of various ethanol blends by manufacturer, model, engine type and year of manufacture.
The petition has further sought constitution of an independent expert committee, comprising representatives from the ministries of petroleum and natural gas, and road transport and highways, the Bureau of Indian Standards, and independent automobile engineers, to examine and submit a public report on real-world vehicle compatibility of E20 fuel across the existing fleet. According to the plea, the committee should also assess the impact of E20 on fuel efficiency, engine longevity, maintenance costs, warranty and insurance implications, and its net environmental footprint, including tail-pipe emissions and water consumption linked to ethanol production, as well as alleged food-security and feed-diversion concerns arising from the blending programme.
The petition has sought a direction to frame a national consumer disclosure protocol for all ethanol-blended petrol, in consultation with the Central Consumer Protection Authority and the Bureau of Indian Standards. It has also asked that authorities be directed to place before the Supreme Court all policy files, technical studies, compatibility reports, safety standards, consumer advisories and records of public consultation supporting the mandatory roll-out of E20.
The plea has additionally called for a time-bound, transparent transition framework for legacy and non-compatible vehicles, including consideration of designated availability of lower-ethanol petrol wherever technically, economically and logistically feasible, backed by a reasoned decision supported by expert material and public consultation.
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Source : ChiniMandi
