Food and Civil Supplies Minister Anoop Jacob said inspections follow reports of vehicle damage and similar claims in Karnataka.
The Keralam government has started random inspections at petrol outlets across Thiruvananthapuram, Ernakulam, Kozhikode and Kannur districts, according to The New Indian Express. Food and Civil Supplies Minister Anoop Jacob announced on Monday that the move follows reports of vehicle damage and claims in Karnataka regarding excessive ethanol in fuel.
Minister Jacob stated that samples will be sent to a government laboratory, with results expected within 10 days. He noted that ethanol content must not exceed the 20 per cent limit. Any outlet found in violation will face prosecution and be sealed shut.
The decision follows allegations in Karnataka that some petrol contained ethanol levels as high as 31.2 per cent. Karnataka Food, Civil Supplies, Consumer Affairs and Legal Metrology Minister Rizwan Arshad said those findings were based on samples from Bengaluru, Kolar, Chikkaballapura, Bengaluru Rural, Ramanagara, Mangaluru and Tumakuru.
Public sector oil marketing companies have rejected the claims made in Karnataka. The companies maintained that their E20 petrol meets the Bureau of Indian Standards specification IS 17021 and raised questions regarding the sampling methodology used.
Under a 2014 state notification, officials from the Commissioner of Civil Supplies and Consumer Affairs to Taluk Supply Officers are authorised to conduct these inspections and take legal action.
