PM Modi bats for ethanol, says 'India needs more fuel alternatives to oil and gas'

PM Modi

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday spoke in support of Ethanol and said that in these changing times, India needs more fuel alternatives to oil and gas.

"Today, a plant to make ethanol from bamboo has been started here. This will be of great benefit to the farmers of Assam," he said, while speaking in Assam's Golaghat.

"India is taking rapid steps in the production of green energy. A decade ago, India was far behind in the field of solar power, but today, India has come among the top five countries in the world in terms of solar power. In these changing times, India needs more fuels as an alternative to oil and gas. One such alternative is ethanol," he said.

"Today, a plant to make ethanol from bamboo has been started here. This will be of great benefit to the farmers of Assam, my tribal brothers, sisters and families. The bamboo required to run the bio-ethanol plant is also being arranged. The government will help the farmers here to cultivate bamboo and will also purchase bamboo. Every year, about Rs 200 crore will be spent in this area. Thousands of people here will benefit from this one plant," the Prime Minister added.

"Today, we are going to make ethanol from bamboo. But you should not forget the days when the Congress government used to put people in jail for cutting bamboo. There was a ban on cutting bamboo, which is a part of the daily life of our tribals. Our government lifted the ban on bamboo cutting and today this decision is benefiting the people of North East a lot," he further said in Assam.

"All of you use many things made of plastic in your daily life. The thing needed to make all this is polypropylene. It is difficult to imagine today's life without polypropylene... The foundation of Make in Assam, Make in India, is going to be strengthened with this plant. Other manufacturing industries will also get a boost here...Now, textiles made from polypropylene are also going to be added to Assam's identity," he added.

This comes when the government and automakers are at loggerheads over the rapid rollout of higher ethanol-blended fuels, with India’s shift to E20 sparking concerns about vehicle performance, consumer costs and food security. While officials argue the 20% ethanol mix will cut oil imports, boost farmers’ incomes and lower emissions, carmakers warn of reduced mileage and long-term wear on older vehicles.

Environmental groups have also pointed to ethanol’s heavy water use and land diversion risks, reigniting the “food versus fuel” debate. Similar tensions are playing out in the United States, where lawmakers are pushing to expand year-round sales of higher ethanol blends amid criticism over their net climate benefits.

The Prime Minister also accused the Congress government for giving land to infiltrators. "Amidst these development efforts, a challenge is becoming more and more severe in front of Assam. This challenge is of infiltration. When the Congress government was here, it gave land to the infiltrators and gave protection to illegal occupation. Congress disturbed the balance of Assam's demography in the greed of vote bank," he said.

"Now the BJP government is fighting this challenge along with the people of Assam... I would also like to praise the Assam government for Mission Basundhara. Under this, land leases have been given to lakhs of families... BJP is fully committed to correct the historical injustice done to the tribal society," he added.