There is no denying the fact that the conflict in faraway West Asia is being felt in domestic kitchens. No matter how much the Government tries to quell the fuel shortage fear, there is a lingering question about what if the tension continues, and its long-term impact on India’s fuel/energy supplies.
As of November 1, 2024, the total number of active domestic LPG consumers in India stands at 32.83 crore. Under the Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana (PMUY), there has been a rapid access to LPG in India, which has replaced the smoky chulhas with cleaner ones, leading to better health of people, notably among women.
But underneath this success lies a structural vulnerability: India still imports nearly 60% of its LPG requirements each year. In an era of volatile geopolitics and energy markets, that dependence is fraught with both fiscal and strategic risks.
At times of global strife, the importance of indigenous fuel gains both policy and strategic importance.
India has a huge agricultural wealth. Not only do the crops provide food and nutrition to the people, but the crop residue is also a rich source of fuel, which is being explored gradually.
One such success story has been in the case of ethanol fuel.
Some 10 years back, substituting fossil fuel was unthinkable in India, but today we are replacing about 20% of petrol with ethanol fuel being produced from molasses and grains.
It’s about time that this is replicated across the household cooking fuel, but substituting LPG with ethanol.
Taking the first lead in this aspect are two important industry bodies- the Indian Sugar & Bio-Energy Manufacturers Association (ISMA) and the Grain Ethanol Manufacturers Association (GEMA). The Associations have written to the Prime Minister’s Office to consider using ethanol-based cooking as a clean fuel to complement it.
It is a proposal worth seriously considering, not just an alternative to LPG but as a pragmatic contribution to India’s emerging energy profile.
India has implemented a strong ethanol ecosystem and network over the last 10 years, in line with the Ethanol Blended Petrol (EBP) Programme and National Policy on Biofuels. Ethanol production capacity is now well over 2,000 crore litres, with a solid agricultural base and favourable policies driving higher production. Therefore, extending ethanol beyond the transport stage into the household kitchen represents a natural next step for value maximisation.
The advantages described by industry organisations are far from trivial. Ethanol burns well, creating virtually no soot and much lower emissions than conventional biomass fuels. It has functionality equivalent to LPG, and is expandable by use of small refill media, especially beneficial to the low-income or rural families.
The option of incorporating hydrous ethanol also promotes cost savings and possibly lowers the cost barrier to adoption. Even the single most modest substitution, say 20%, would help lower LPG demand by 6 million tonnes annually, with similar effects. That means lower import bills, eased subsidy burdens and improved energy security.
At a moment when global supply chains continue to be brittle, that diversification isn’t just good policy, it’s critical. But policy fervour must be tempered with realism. First and foremost, safety and standardisation can’t be an afterthought.
Pilot programmes, which GEMA recommends, are both necessary to set safety standards and build consumer confidence. Adoption of ethanol cookstoves will depend on affordability.
Although ethanol is cost-effective, the pricing of ethanol is influenced by feedstock availability, competing demand from the fuel sector, and government policy.
The distribution infrastructure needs a rethink. With LPG, the success lies not only in fuel availability but also in last mile delivery, refill convenience and consumer awareness. The re-creation of that ecosystem for ethanol will require investment, a certain level of coordination and time.
Ethanol cookstoves have found success worldwide in some parts of Africa and Latin America because their clean combustion and simple use offer value. India, with its size and policy ability, is in a good position to test and refine such models. The way forward is through calibrated experimentation.
Some efforts are being made at local level and one such is ethanol based stove developed by Sahakar Maharshi Shankarrao Kolhe Sugar Factory. The stove developed under the Atmanirbhar Bharat initiative is being projected as a viable alternative for commercial users.
India’s energy transition is not linear. It is a mosaic of solutions, filling a variety of needs, working in a variety of constraints. In the kitchen itself, ethanol would soon take on that role if policy ambition is matched with the right implementation.
An informative White Paper was submitted by ISMA to the Government, wherein the Paper talks about a February 2026 report titled India’s Clean Cooking Shift: Scaling non-fossil fuel solutions by the International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD). It confirms that transitioning to e-cooking and biogas could save India over INR 2 trillion (USD 24 billion) in cumulative LPG subsidies by 2050.
The dependence on LPG continues to expose India to hectic global uncertainties, which is a hurdle to growth. Ethanol cookstoves, backed by a robust domestic ecosystem and agricultural base, offer a viable pathway to diversify the clean cooking energy mix. But a calibrated approach is required to make it a success. The ball has started to roll, and soon it will turn into another resounding achievement of India’s green fuel transition.
