Green hydrogen to make India exporter of energy: Mr Nitin Gadkari 
CII institutes Vikram Kirloskar Memorial Lecture Series

Union minister for road transport and highways Mr Nitin Gadkari today said that India will be an exporter of energy and green hydrogen will make it possible. Delivering the inaugural CII Vikram Kirloskar Memorial Lecture in Bengaluru today, Mr Gadkari said it was time Indian agriculture diversifies towards energy and power.

CII has instituted the CII Vikram Kirloskar Memorial Lecture Series to honour the memory of its past president and erstwhile Vice Chairperson, Toyota Kirloskar Motors. The series will be conducted in partnership with the Vikram Kirloskar family.

The inaugural lecture was themed ‘Future of Green Mobility and Green Fuels’.

While reminiscing late Mr Vikram Kirloskar, Shri Gadkari said he was a statesman of the automobile industry who supported innovation and new technology and was committed to clean and safe transport. “His commitment for ecology and environment was remarkable,” he added.

The minister asked the industry to work towards making India the biggest automobile producer within five years while working towards introduction of flexi fuel engine and alternative fuel.

Mr Gadkari said import of around Rs 16 lakh crore of fossil fuel was not only an economic problem but was also causing pollution in major cities and creating health problems. He said his ministry was working towards pollution reduction especially since the road sector was responsible for 40 per cent of air pollution.

Besides automobiles, the minister also emphasised on the need to use alternative fuel like ethanol, methanol and CNG for tractors and drones. He said flexi fuel engine could be used in drones for the agriculture sector in order to have more efficient use of urea and other fertilisers.

Mr Gadkari said corn, wheat, sugar, and rice were surplus in production and the prices in India were not remunerative which made agriculture unviable. Production of biofuels could change this.

In her comments at the lecture event, Ms Geetanjali Vikram Kirloskar, chairperson and managing director, Kirloskar Systems, said both her husband and the honourable minister shared the passion for new technologies especially in the space of mobility. She said the lecture sets the tone for the industry to strive towards creating a seamless and sustainable mobility landscape.

Mr Chandrajit Bannerjee, director general, CII, said late Mr Vikram Kirloskar’s legacy was one of strong and committed leadership of the Indian industry. Mr Kirloskar was CII president during 2019-2020 steering CII in its 125th year but it was one of the most challenging tenure because of COVID-19. Mr Kirloskar was constantly with the CII team while managing his own company.

12 December 2023

Bengaluru