The Road Transport and Highways Ministry has made it compulsory for manufacturers of Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) and Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) to offer either guarantee or warranty with their products. It is believed that the new policy of government will be completely operational in a few couple of months. Industry experts are of a view that the new policy will not just ensure the quality of kits but will also come as an assurance for the buyers that the product is safe and less vulnerable to unwanted cases. The move is also expected to come as a safeguard against unauthorised distributors of LPG and CNG kits.
With the new rule, the government is trying to ensure that the use of alternative fuels is also equally safe and authentic for use. It must be noted that as of now, none of the LPG and CNG kit manufacturer offers any type of guarantee or warranty on the kits they fit as they call it a third party fitting. However, with the recent move of Road Transport and Highways Ministry, the car manufacturers will not be allowed to sell their cars with CNG or LPG kits without warranty. Reportedly, the fitting of CNG and LPG kits in cars offer a number of advantages to customers, which are luring a magnitude of audience towards its stand.
The introduction of safety guidelines for CNG and LPG kits appeared in the limelight following the increasing number of fire cases and other such issues. On this, a ministry official was quoted as saying, “Though there was hesitation from the manufacturers' side, we pushed for this as a mandatory provision. In the next 2-3 months, we will come out with a notification on this and manufacturers failing to meet this condition won't be allowed to sell their products.”
He later added that since the manufacturers would take time to comply with the new norms, the government plans to imply it all over India before the end of current year. According to a study, a number of car owners have opted for CNG or LPG kits in their petrol vehicles, considering the lower cost of fuel. In the last few years, the National Capital and its suburbs have witnessed a rising trend of CNG fuelled vehicles. Also, the alternative fuel has been limited to only a number of cities and it is not available in all parts of the country.
