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Bengaluru, November 10, 2026 (Yes Punjab News)
Karnataka Large and Medium Industries and Infrastructure Development Minister MB Patil on Tuesday blamed Union Road Transport and Highways Minister Nitin Gadkari for the ongoing ethanol controversy, alleging that the Center encouraged large-scale ethanol production without ensuring adequate procurement arrangements.
Patil demanded a comprehensive investigation into the issue, which has triggered a political and consumer debate over the mandatory 20 per cent ethanol-blending (E20) policy. The Karnataka Government has alleged that some fuel samples contained ethanol levels exceeding 30 per cent, a claim disputed by central oil marketing companies.
Speaking to the media, Patil said the Center had created difficulties by promoting excessive ethanol blending without making sufficient arrangements to procure the additional production. He held Gadkari primarily responsible and criticized Union Minister Pralhad Joshi for defending the policy.
Patil suggested that sugar industry representatives, including BJP leader Murugesh Nirani and Prabhakar Kore, could be consulted to understand the situation on the ground. He also questioned the Centre's doubts over the test results, saying petrol samples had been sent to central government laboratories for examination.
He said sugar factories were facing excess ethanol stocks in Karnataka and Maharashtra, while the situation in Uttar Pradesh was relatively better. Patil argued that the blending program should initially have been introduced on a pilot basis in four or five districts before being expanded nationwide.
On Karnataka's aviation sector, Patil said the state government had prepared a comprehensive civil aviation policy that would be placed before the next Cabinet meeting. The proposed policy includes financial assistance, viability gap funding and measures to improve the operations of state-managed airports. He expressed confidence that it could serve as a model for other states.
Blaming shortcomings in the Centre's UDAN-2 scheme for the suspension of flight services from Shivamogga airport, Patil said Karnataka had proposed extending the scheme's support period from three to five years, followed by another five years of operations with expenses shared equally by the Center and the state. He said the Center had rejected the proposal and claimed that 17 airports across the country had consequently become non-operational.
Patil also criticized the Centre's airport management and privatization decisions, citing the handover of Mangaluru airport to the Adani Group and the proposed privatization of Hubballi airport. He said Karnataka had spent Rs 1,000 crore on Kalaburagi airport and handed it over to the Center without receiving any financial return.
The state government, he said, had decided to operate the Shivamogga, Raichur and Vijayapura airports rather than invest thousands of crores in building airports only to hand them over to the Centre.
Patil added that flight services at Kalaburagi airport had resumed with 80 per cent of the funding coming from the Kalyana Karnataka Region Development Board and the remaining 20 per cent from the state government. He challenged Shivamogga MP BY Raghavendra to arrange similar financial assistance for Shivamogga airport instead of blaming the state government.