New Delhi to have cleaner, upgraded automobile fuel from April

New Delhi, Mar 24 (ANI): Union Petroleum and Natural Gas Minister Murli Deora on Wednesday launched 'Bharat Stage-IV, an upgraded and costlier automobile fuel, here.

New Delhi, along with 12 other cities will have 'Bharat Stage-IV' from April 1.

During his address after launching the fuel, Deora said : "On the supply side, arrangements have been made to ensure availability of petrol and diesel conforming to Bharat Stage-IV norms from 1st April, 2010 in all the 13 cities specifies in the roadmap."

The cities, which will switch from the Euro-III grade of auto fuel to the Euro-IV (or Bharat Stage-IV), include New Delhi, Mumbai and Ahmedabad, Kolkata, and the Chennai, Bangalore and Hyderabad.

The Bharat Stage IV fuel may cost between 40 paise to a rupee extra per litre.

A decade ago, India's petroleum ministry in association with Delhi government started an ambitious programme to supply Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) for all public transport vehicles. At that time, Delhi was one of the world's 10 most polluted cities, with vehicles contributing about 65 percent of the emissions.

The launch of the BS-IV fuels will strengthen the state government's efforts for a cleaner and greener city that is preparing to host the Commonwealth Games in October this year. (ANI)