New Delhi [India], August 4 : The Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas (MoPNG) on Tuesday stated that fuel quality is being regularly monitored by Oil Marketing Companies (OMCs) and that additional checks have been introduced alongside existing testing protocols to detect and prevent any possible contamination across the fuel supply chain.
Referring to reports in a section of the media citing issues of contamination, the Ministry said strict action will be taken in case adulteration is found at any retail outlet.
The Ministry said in a post on X that as part of the intensified monitoring, water ingress testing is being conducted 8-12 times a day at more than 87,000 retail outlets across the country.
It said that the additional checks have been instituted to strengthen the existing mechanisms for ensuring fuel quality at retail outlets.
MoPNG also said that more than 2,000 fuel samples have been tested for chloride and sulphide contamination. So far, only two cases of chloride contamination have been detected across the country, according to the Ministry.
Sales from both retail outlets where chloride contamination was detected were suspended immediately, the Ministry said, adding that strict action would be taken wherever any instance of fuel contamination or adulteration is found.
The Ministry has also instructed OMCs to take proactive measures to detect any possible contamination across the entire fuel supply chain. This is intended to ensure that monitoring is not restricted to retail outlets and that potential quality issues are identified at different stages of the supply and distribution network.
MoPNG said OMCs already have advanced and elaborate testing protocols in place and that the additional checks are aimed at further strengthening safeguards.
The frequent water-ingress testing is particularly aimed at identifying the presence of water in fuel storage systems, while testing for chloride and sulphide is intended to detect specific forms of contamination.
The Ministry reiterated that strict action will be taken against retail outlets where contamination or adulteration is detected. OMCs have also been directed to remain vigilant and proactively identify possible contamination throughout the fuel supply chain.