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Diesel cars supersede CNG cars in India

If the Central Government has dropped the proposal of tax on diesel cars, there is something behind it. It is the foresight that India is heading to a diesel car dominated market. Even CNG models of cars such as Tata Indigo XL, Maruti SX4 and others have all lost breath in the sales race to diesel cars. With the rise in petrol prices and even CNG price has received some major increases over the years, the customer is left with one fuel which is diesel. Similar is the fate of electric vehicles in India.  

Diesel cars have been considered as bulky, cumbersome and needing high maintenance in the past but over the years, with the advancement of technology and adoption of diesel as a fuel for small automobiles, diesel cars have become more and more efficient not just from the point of view of mileage but power delivery as well. Most importantly, as it is the fuel that powers the agriculture and industries along with transport industry, it is highly subsidized and hence its price is low as compared to petrol. CNG no doubt is a clean fuel but its limited availability is a big question mark and this is the reason why CNG cars in India have failed to catch up.  

Above all, as per a survey the running cost of a diesel powered car such as Maruti Swift is less than a CNG powered similar car. Besides that where CNG prices have increased by 97 percent in the recent years, diesel prices have increased by only 34 percent and is now available around Rs 40.75. CNG price in India is around Rs 35.45. Another major factor that dissuades people from buying CNG variants is the non availability of CNG across cities and small towns whereas diesel is easily available everywhere even more than petro.