India’s ethanol ambitions are being dented by El Niño-linked poor monsoon rains, rising food prices and weaker feedstock supplies. Multiple outlets report that crop shortages are squeezing the sugar and corn inputs used for ethanol blending, raising questions about whether blending levels can be maintained.
Across the coverage, the central theme is that food security takes priority over biofuel production as shortages affect key feedstocks such as sugarcane and corn. The Kathmandu Post and Business Line say ethanol blending in petrol could fall to around 15 percent, with implications including greater dependence on imported oil. Free Malaysia Today similarly links reduced sugar and corn use for ethanol to record-high prices and frames the development as a setback to Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s efforts to cut oil imports. While the outlets share the same broad narrative, their emphasis varies between the projected blending impact and the political objective of reducing import reliance.
