Maruti Suzuki India on Thursday unveiled the WagonR Flex Fuel, India’s first mass-market passenger vehicle capable of operating on ethanol-petrol blends ranging from E20 to E100, marking a significant step in the country’s transition towards alternative and cleaner fuels.
The new model is engineered to run on up to 100 per cent ethanol, making it the first passenger car in India designed for such capability. The launch aligns with the government’s broader efforts to reduce dependence on conventional fossil fuels and promote the use of biofuels in the transportation sector.
The unveiling was attended by Union Minister for Road Transport and Highways Nitin Gadkari, who highlighted the government’s initiatives to encourage cleaner mobility solutions.
Speaking at the event, Gadkari said the government is also planning to introduce diesel blended with 15 per cent isobutanol as part of its alternative fuel strategy.
He urged automobile manufacturers, including Maruti Suzuki and Hero MotoCorp, to explore converting older vehicles into flex-fuel-compatible models while aligning them with stricter emission standards, including Euro 6 norms.
According to the minister, such measures would help reduce air pollution and complement the vehicle scrappage policy aimed at phasing out older and more polluting vehicles.
Gadkari described the automobile sector as a major contributor to India’s economic growth and noted that the country now has the world’s third-largest automobile industry, with a significant contribution to the national GDP.
Maruti Suzuki Managing Director and CEO Hisashi Takeuchi said the company is also investing in compressed biogas (CBG) projects and exploring cleaner technologies, including hydrogen-based fuel solutions.
Outlining the company’s broader clean mobility roadmap, Partho Banerjee, Senior Executive Officer for Marketing and Sales, said Maruti Suzuki accounted for nearly half of all green vehicles sold in the Indian automobile industry during the last financial year.
The launch of the flex-fuel WagonR comes amid increasing efforts by policymakers and automakers to diversify fuel options, improve energy security and reduce carbon emissions from the transport sector.
(With IANS inputs)
