Govt ignores cng’s potential

Says P S Deodhar, former chairperson, Mahanagar Gas Limited, which has a monopoly over the fuel in Mumbai: “Unlike petrol and diesel, CNG contains methane, a molecule naturally found in the environment. It is ideal for vehicles since it is the only naturally available pollution-free fuel.” And if that is not incentive enough, the cost of the fuel should be. In fact, the maximum number of vehicles that queue up at the city’s 16 outlets are taxis and not private vehicles.

Still, it is cheaper than bothpetrol and diesel, pollution-free and also offers more mileage. Moreover, the cost of converting engines to run on CNG is low. This means, running a vehicle on CNG costs 40 per cent less than what it takes to run a vehicle on petrol per kilometre. That is, at the rate of Rs 14.50 per kg, a 10 kg of CNG allows a Fiat to run for 120 km without a refill.

All it needs for a petrol or diesel-driven car to switch to CNG is a retrofit with an add-on that enables it to run on the fuel. CNG kits, which cost around Rs 35,000, are easily available. Since there is no carbonisation of the engines, they run longer than ones on petrol or diesel. According to A L Quadros of the Mumbai Taximen’s Union, the wear and tear and maintenance of CNG engines is the same as those of other engines.

So if CNG is the answer to pollution problems, why is the government not acting? Remarks Deodhar: “Most private vehicles don’t use CNG simply because it is not readily available. There was a proposal some time ago to take gas pipelinesfrom Chembur to South Mumbai via Mumbai Port Trust land without disturbing MbPT activities. It was a great idea but failed to take off because the state government has not shown any initiative. In contrast, the Delhi government has given 50 locations free of cost to local gas companies to set up CNG stations. But the Maharashtra government has done precious little in this direction. The whole thing has been blocked by bureaucratic lethargy and corruption.”

Last year, there was a proposal to introduce CNG autorickshaws in the city. However, the idea never took off because the Bombay Autorickshaw Union was unwilling to fork out the Rs 21,000 for the conversion kit, saying the auto trade “was going through bad times”. The Brihanmumbai Electric Supply and Transport undertaking too has only 10 CNG buses. In its recent budget estimate, it has planned to increase the fleet to 100 by March 31, 2001.

Deodhar adds, “There was a proposal some time ago to open CNG stations under flyovers. Though the temperatureat which natural gas becomes flammable is higher than that of petrol, the idea is ridiculous as it would mean playing with the lives of people.”

With only 16 outlets, Mahangar Gas uses only 25 per cent of the CNG alloted for this purpose, Deodhar says. “If the government is really serious about tackling pollution, it will sanction more outlets soon. Apart from reducing pollution, it can also bring down taxi fares.” However, Transport Commissioner V M Lal has said that only five more outlets will be added by March 31, 2000.