IOC (Indian Oil Corporation) official Manjunath Shanmugam’s murder ostensibly has taken the lid off the sordid saga of transport fuel adulteration in India. Not only does adulterated fuel turn young lives like that of Manjunath into sacrificial lambs, the environment is also severely affected by emissions and exhaust with compounded amounts of toxic gases. Vehicle engines go kaput at an alarming rate; emissions lead to deadly air in cities and the hope of a likely future with green fuel is quashed. As price differentials between petrol, diesel, and kerosene fluctuate, making the former the most profitable to pilfer, the fuel mafia makes a killing, quite literally.
Complaints of premature engine failure in cars even before the expiry of warranty period are routine affairs. While Maruti Udyog Limited has received between 150 and 200 complaints of this nature since 2003, Hyundai is facing the heat with about 70–80 consumers filing engine failure complaints. Both companies had fuel samples collected and sent for tests in the IOC’s Research and Development Centre in Faridabad. Nothing unusual came out of the tests. However, closer examination of the corroded engine parts revealed the presence of chloropentane: a dry cleaning solvent.
Similar fuel samples sent by Maruti Udyog Limited to the Indian Institute of Petroleum, Dehradun, confirmed the presence of highly concentrated chlorine compounds. Samples acquired by the anti-adulteration cell of the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas from highway outlets showed traces of another cleaning agent: acetylene. A test carried out in 1998 also showed quantities of paint solvents in petrol samples. In October 2003, the anti-adulteration cell raided a godown of a chemical factory in Mundka village (northwest Delhi) and unearthed 0.16 million litres of fuel suspected to be diesel. Another major seizure of tampered-with fuel took place in January this year when the department of food and civil supplies discovered a dump containing 0.28 million litres of illegal solvents in Shahbad Daulatpur in west Delhi.
The process of adulteration begins with pilferage from tankers carrying transport fuel. This fuel is then mixed with solvents, kerosene, and other chemicals, illegally siphoned from industrial units. The secret operations are carried out in run-down sheds that could be easily dismantled in case of a raid. Adulteration hotspots dot the countryside. Coastal areas, the interiors of North India, and north-east India are the major trouble spots.
The fact remains that the impact of tinkered-with fuel on emissions and vehicles has never been rigorously assessed. In 1998, the Delhi High Court had directed the government to test emissions from vehicles running on adulterated petrol, that is, petrol mixed with kerosene. Tests conducted by Prof H B Mathur, Department of Mechanical Engineering, IIT (Indian Institute of Technology), Delhi, found dramatic increases in emission levels. Since petrol and kerosene do not make a uniform mixture and lead to incomplete combustion, particulate emission increases by leaps and bounds.
A few studies available have largely looked at the diesel and kerosene mix, as that is the single most common adulterant. The Motor Test Centre, Sweden, conducted tests on the Volvo (model 940 D) in 1991; it was made to run on fuel mixed with 30% kerosene. The centre found increase in emissions by 36% while particulates declined by 12%. Nowhere in the world have investigations been carried out to test the deadly impact of a mix of industrial solvents, heavy fuel oils, waste oil, and lubricants.
A World Bank study points out that adulterants with halogens, phosphorus, or metallic elements can cause internal damage to engine components such as fuel injector, spark plug, oxygen censors, and even catalytic converters. Heavier fuels increase engine deposits and thus emissions. In diesel-run vehicles, adulterants with high sulphur content can affect the oxidation catalyst. The automobile industry, despite great risks to its products, has failed to assess the problem objectively and come up with viable solutions.
Some very feeble attempts have been made to curb the illegal fuel adulteration trade. The government has issued two orders, namely the Naphtha (Acquisition, Sale, Storage, and Prevention of Use in Automobile) Order, 2000, and the Solvent, Raffinate, and Slop (Acquisition, Sale, Storage, and Prevention of use in Automobile) Order, 2000, under the Essential Commodities Act, 1955, to keep a close vigil on the use of solvents and chemicals and to limit their misuse. These orders have clearly made no difference, as rampant trafficking of transport fuel continues at the behest of the mob, putting lives and the environment in serious danger.
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