Gadkari says India will see new freedom when petrol & diesel won't be imported

India will see a new freedom when not a drop of petrol or diesel is imported into the country, Union Minister for Road Transport and Highways Nitin Gadkari reportedly said. PTI has reported that the minister has also said that stopping the import of petrol and diesel is linked to arresting terrorism across the world.

The minister reportedly said that the import bill for petrol and diesel in India currently stands at ₹16 lakh crore. Gadkari reportedly claimed that if India can reduce the import of fossil fuels into the country, the money it saves will go to the poor. This is not the first time Nitin Gadkari has advocated for the reduction of petrol and diesel imports into the country. Previously as well, he advocated for the reduction of fossil fuels from foreign countries and the development of greener and cleaner alternative fuel solutions in India.

Gadkari reportedly said that reducing imports is the new way ahead for patriotism. "The import bill for petrol and diesel stands at ₹16 lakh crore now. If we reduce this import, the money we save will go to the poor. That is why we have introduced alternative fuels like biofuel. Reduction in imports and increase in exports is the way forward for patriotism and swadeshi," he asserted. The news agency has also quoted the minister saying, “Till this import is not stopped, terrorism will not stop across the world. The aim of my life is to stop import of petrol and diesel. I consider it to be a new freedom for India when not a drop of petrol and diesel is imported into the country."

Speaking about the Indian automobile industry, Gadkari reportedly said that the size of the country's auto industry in 2014 was ₹7 lakh crore and now it is sized at ₹12.5 lakh crore. He also added that the automobile industry provides employment to 4.5 crore people. Also, it is the industry that gives the highest GST to state governments and the centre, the minister added.

Asserting that the country's automobile industry would be number one in the world in the next five years, Gadkari said, "Maximum imports are happening in the automobile industry. If we want to become Vishwaguru (world leader) and $5 trillion economy, then we have to become number one in exports." His comment comes at a time when just three months ago, India jumped from the seventh position to third in the automobile exports sector, surpassing powerhouses like Japan.