Paid campaign against me: Nitin Gadkari on E20 petrol furore online

“Everywhere there are lobbies, there are interests… petrol lobby is very rich,” Gadkari said, reacting to growing social media concerns over E20 - petrol blended with 20 per cent ethanol. His remarks came at the 65th annual convention of the Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers (SIAM) in New Delhi.

The rollout of E20, which began at select fuel stations in April 2023, was expanded nationwide in April 2025. It replaced E10 - petrol with 10 per cent ethanol - that most cars in India currently use. Ethanol is an alcohol mainly derived from sugarcane and food grains such as maize and rice.

E20 has triggered debate among consumers and automobile experts, many of whom argue that blending ethanol could hurt vehicles’ efficiency and longevity. Experts told PTI that cars running on E20 may see a 2–5 per cent drop in mileage due to ethanol’s lower calorific value compared to petrol.