The Kerala Civil Supplies Department inspected fuel pumps in Kochi on Monday to check the density of E20 petrol, days after Karnataka said tests had found ethanol levels far above the prescribed limit. The checks are part of a statewide exercise covering four districts, with results expected within 10 days.
Six samples collected in Kochi, two sent to Kakinada lab
District Civil Supplies Officer Shaji PR said six one litre samples of ordinary petrol, known as motor spirit, were collected in Kochi. Two of the samples were sent to an analytical chemical laboratory in Kakinada for testing, and the results are awaited. The inspections in Kochi took place on Monday, 9 November, after Kerala ordered the checks over the weekend.
Random checks across the state, minister says
Food and Civil Supplies Minister Anoop Jacob said random samples are being collected across the state to see whether ethanol in petrol is within the prescribed limits. He said the samples have been sent to government owned chemical laboratories and further steps will follow once the results arrive. The exercise covers Thiruvananthapuram, Ernakulam, Kozhikode and Kannur, with five pumps to be checked per district in the first phase. No instance of excess blending had come to Kerala's notice so far.
What Karnataka found, and why Delhi disagrees
Karnataka Food and Civil Supplies Minister Rizwan Arshad said on 6 November that tests on 63 samples from seven districts, Bengaluru, Kolar, Chikkaballapura, Bengaluru Rural, Ramanagara, Mangaluru and Tumakuru, found ethanol levels of up to 31.2 per cent in an Indian Oil sample and 30.5 per cent in a Hindustan Petroleum sample. He said 11 of 14 selected samples were above 20 per cent, with readings in the range of 26 to 31 per cent. The Union Petroleum Ministry rejected the findings on 7 November, saying all 893 E20 samples tested from 27 states and Union Territories were within 19 to 21 per cent, with 56 samples from Karnataka compliant with BIS standard IS 17021 at an average of 19.3 per cent. The ministry questioned Karnataka's sampling and testing methodology, and the oil marketing companies Indian Oil, Bharat Petroleum and Hindustan Petroleum jointly rejected the claims.
The 2014 order behind the Kerala checks
The Kerala inspections are being carried out under a 2014 state notification issued under the Central Motor Spirit and High Speed Diesel (Regulation of Supply, Distribution and Prevention of Malpractices) Order, 2005. Union Minister of State for Petroleum Suresh Gopi said on 8 November that the Karnataka and Kerala governments were free to test fuel, while cautioning against politicising the issue. Kerala announced the checks on 7 November, and the Kochi inspections and sample collection happened on 9 November.
