The much awaited Natural Gas Vehicle (NGV) conference kick-started from today in Mumbai. The conference cum exhibition will be open for a duration of three days with eminent speakers discussing about not only the growth opportunities but also answering the queries of those visiting these discussions. As said by one of the speakers the conference will be business, knowledge and social exchange spread across three days. The exhibition was declared open by Mr. Jitin Prasada, Minister of State for Petroleum and Natural Gas. He went on to say how important conferences such as these were as they got together some brilliant minds and also make the public understand that there are enough and more ways to counter the epidemic of pollution.
He also emphasized on the fact that gas discoveries in India would add up to the tally and it would prove to be a boon for India. He elaborated on the point that Mr. Mansingh, Chairman, Petroleum and Natural Gas regulatory Board, had made earlier about laying down pipelines for natural gas so that there would availability of natural gas would reach the remotest of places in India. He said that the Government of India had already sanctioned the laying of more than 6000 kms of natural gas pipeline and in the coming years would be sanctioning 5000 kms more. But it seemed clear from the beginning that the Minister was clearly interested in the concept of a CNG two-wheeler.
After declaring the exhibition open Mr. Jitin Prasada headed off to the sole stall which exhibited the 2-wheeler CNG and enquired about its specifications. The two wheeler boasted of a 1kg CNG tank and a full tank would last for 120 kms. The price of the vehicle was a cause of concern and it was told that the bike could cost anywhere around Rs. 60,000 to Rs. 1.3 lakh. Of course suggestions for government subsidies were pounded on the Minister but he gracefully left the stall and headed off to take a round of the exhibition.
Many national and international companies form a part of this exhibition and even big players of the Indian 
car market could not resist this opportunity to enlighten the audience that they too are doing that part to conserve the environment. Car manufacturers like Tata Motors, Mahindra&Mahindra, Kirloskar Motors and Maruti Suzuki India displayed their own CNG models. For Tata Motors, it was the Magic, the Xenon pick-up, the Ace, the Indigo XL and also the 909 Starbus which had the company fitted CNG. ‘Green Engineering’ as Tata Motors calls it would certainly make a lot of difference to the companies image as the speakers in the conference thwarted the use of diesel saying how it adversely affected the environment.
Shinzo Nakanishi, Managing director and CEO, Maruti Suzuki India Ltd too cleared the air by mentioning that the company too is looking at introducing cars powered by CNG. He also mentioned about the CNG cars the company launched in Delhi on the 15th of August (read article here) But when asked about a plunge into the electric car sector Mr. Nakanishi mentioned that the future of CNG looked brighter than the electric car and so said that the company would think only of long term investment. He further said that with the help of the Government of India the cities would be greener.
A host of speakers including Mr. Mansingh admitted to the fact that infrastructure growth in India is a huge problem. "The growth is gradual but things will fall in place eventually" is what he said. When asked if the Government of Maharashtra lent support to the idea of CNG, Mansingh said that destabilization of the Government has rendered him helpless and he was soon to meet the Chief Minister of Maharashtra and would continue the discussions.
Mr. Mayank Parekh, Managing Executive Officer, Marketing and Sales, too agreed that the Government was cooperative and encouraged the car manufacturers to produce greener cars. When asked about the problem 
that Maruti Suzuki India Ltd faced in certain parts as regards their CNG vehicles (read report here) Mayank said that the matter has not yet been fully resolved. He said that 50-60% of the filling stations now have the infrastructure in place. When questioned if the people should still go in for Maruti Suzuki CNG vehicles he said, “Of course, they should go in for it. The city needs greener cars and we are providing them with it. There are only a small percentage of filling stations remaining and the issue will be resolved quickly, so there is no problem.†We couldn’t resist asking when the Kizashi would arrive and with a slight grin on his face he said that the car will arrive within the financial year. When asked if it would come in February or March he said that "March is what I would look at." So for all those waiting for the Kizashi, March is what you look forward to.
The Government of India is certainly looking at promoting the NGVs in a big way. Foreign investment and the hours put into R&D for the implementation of this strategy speaks volumes about the urgency and the need for greener cities. The increase in the sales of diesel vehicles is a cause of concern for both the EPCA and the Government of India but then again alternate fuels are still being researched on and their availability on a large scale too has been questioned. But fighting for a greener planet is what this conference is all about and NGVs will just help in fulfilling that criteria.
