no future for petrol and diesel vehicles
Petrol And Diesel Vehicles Have No Future : Said Transport Minister Nitin Gadkari : Union Road Transport and Highways Minister Nitin Gadkari has made it clear that petrol and diesel vehicles have no future in the country. Addressing an industry conference on Wednesday, he said that rising pollution and expensive oil imports from abroad have become a big problem for the country. Therefore, vehicle manufacturing companies must now focus on bio-fuel and electric vehicles.
Minister Gadkari advised the industry to focus on quality and safety instead of just making cheap vehicles. Today’s consumers prefer quality, comfortable and safe vehicles over low prices. So, there will be no compromise on safety. He also said that India needs about 1.5 lakh electric buses in the next three years to improve its public transport system. Currently, India has only 2 buses for every 1000 people, which is 8 at the international level. So, there is a huge opportunity in this sector. He urged companies to use indigenous technology and pollution-free fuel in vehicles.
The union minister also revealed that the government has already begun pilot projects for hydrogen mobility and companies. Major Indian companies, including Tata Motors, Volvo, Ashok Leyland, and Mahindra & Mahindra, are already involved in hydrogen fuel trials.
“We are now on the 10 routes where we are running hydrogen trucks and buses. Hydrogen is the fuel of the future,” he mentioned.
Coming back to the discussion on flex-fuel, the minister emphasised the importance of ethanol as a significant alternative fuel, pointing out India’s capability to generate ethanol from various feedstocks. He further revealed that the industry is already working on the development of flex fuel engines while vehicles continue to operate on E20 fuel.
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