Team Bharat stir against ethanol scam in Delhi today 

New Delhi: The debate over ethanol-blended petrol is set to move from social media to the streets in the country for the first time, with entrepreneur and television personality Tehseen Poonawalla set to protest the Centre's E20 fuel rollout at Delhi's Jantar Mantar at 2 pm on Sunday. 

Poonawalla warned that if the permission to protest was not allowed, a handful of demonstrators could instead sit outside the residence of Union Minister Nitin Gadkari, who is at the forefront of the ethanol-blending campaign. 

The protest, organised under the banner “TEAM BHARAT against the Ethanol Scam”, is being billed by its organisers as the first big public demonstration against the “rushed implementation” of the BJP-led Centre’s ethanol-blending policy. 

Opposition to E20 petrol has so far largely remained confined to social media, automobile fora and consumer groups, but organisers claim growing public frustration over a drop in mileage and alleged vehicle wear and tear has now pushed the issue onto the streets. 

Video after video is emerging of people showing how fuel from petrol pumps seem to be “adulterated” and not blended.

There are scores of clips in which people are complaining of a big drop in mileage because of ethanol-blended petrol and the damage that the fuel is doing to their vehicles. 

The government has denied these claims, with Petroleum Minister Hardeep Singh Puri saying on Thursday that the drop in mileage due to E20 was “minor”. “It is well established that when you have ethanol in a vehicle, which they use in racing cars also, acceleration increases, knocking improves,” said Puri. 

The critics are refusing to buy any of that logic. They are not against the ethanol policy but how it is being implemented and users being left without a choice. 

Around 80% of the vehicles in India weren’t E20 compatible as of April 2024, according to Context Journalism of Thomson Reuters Foundation. “We have requested permission from the Delhi Police, but they are gasping and ghosting us,” Poonawalla said. 

“I request the Delhi Police not to act like a toxic lover. We are citizens of the greatest country. Please don’t ignore us or deny us our fundamental right to protest. We believe in democracy,” he said. 

When asked about what the organisers would do if permission was denied, Poonawalla said the decision would ultimately rest with the participants but suggested a sit-in outside the residence of Union minister Nitin Gadkari could be an option.Government