NEW DELHI, June 4 (H.S.): Union Minister for Petroleum and Natural Gas Hardeep Singh Puri on Thursday said that despite the West Asia crisis and ongoing global geopolitical turbulence, India has witnessed only marginal increases in petrol and diesel prices compared to most other countries.

He made the remarks while addressing the launch event of India’s first flex-fuel passenger vehicle manufactured by Maruti Suzuki in New Delhi. Union Road Transport and Highways Minister Nitin Gadkari was also present at the event.

Puri said the initiative would further strengthen the vision of “Atmanirbhar Bharat” (self-reliant India). During the event, he also presented an ambitious roadmap for the nationwide adoption of flex-fuel vehicles and ethanol infrastructure.

The minister said that the introduction of flex-fuel technology in the passenger vehicle segment is not merely a product launch but marks the beginning of a new chapter in India’s energy transition. Flex-fuel vehicles are capable of running on varying ethanol-petrol blends ranging from E20 to E100.

He noted that India has around 3.7 million passenger vehicles, reflecting the aspirations of the middle class and the future of personal mobility. Large-scale adoption of flex-fuel technology in this segment could significantly boost ethanol-based mobility.

Puri further said that despite the ongoing West Asia crisis, India has maintained near-normal fuel supplies for over 90 days. He pointed out that nearly 90 per cent of India’s crude oil imports pass through the Strait of Hormuz.

The minister also highlighted that before the conflict in West Asia began on February 28, around 60 per cent of India’s LPG imports also passed through the Hormuz Strait. He stressed that as a country of 1.4 billion people with energy demand growing at nearly three times the global average, India has ensured uninterrupted availability of petroleum products across the country.

“There was no shortage of petroleum products anywhere in the country. People continued to travel normally by road and air. Despite global disruptions, India maintained near-normal conditions,” he said.

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Hindusthan Samachar / Jun Sarkar