Two years after a Supreme Court order, the government sets up the first fuel testing lab in Noida
in 1998, the Supreme Court had directed the Union government to set up two independent fuel testing centres in Delhi to check fuel adulteration. It took the Centre two years to implement the order, and on June 6 minister for petroleum and natural gas Ram Naik inaugurated the first Fuel Testing Laboratory at New Okhla Industrial Development Area (noida) near Delhi.
Speaking on the occasion, Naik called upon oil industry dealers/ distributors and everybody concerned to cooperate towards preventing the adulteration of petroleum products. The fuel testing laboratory will cater to the National Capital Region ( ncr ), including other towns from the neighbouring states such as noida, Faridabad, Gurgaon and Ghaziabad.
Speaking of the measures taken by the government to provide better quality fuel, Naik said unleaded petrol and diesel with 0.25 per cent sulphur content is being supplied throughout the country. The sulphur content in petrol has been further reduced to 0.05 per cent for supply in ncr whereas diesel with 0.05 per cent sulphur can be obtained from selected outlets. He further announced that the Benzene content in petrol would be reduced to one per cent in ncr by October 2000. The minister informed that an investment of about Rs 6,000 crore had been made in refineries to produce 0.25 per cent sulphur content diesel. This amount, he said, would be further raised to make 0.05 per cent sulphur content diesel available to the entire country.
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