The Economic Survey has cautioned that biofuel mandates and feedstock-specific price incentives can lead to long-term distortions in cropping patterns and food price dynamics if they are not periodically recalibrated.As India's ethanol blending programme matures, the Survey argues for a comprehensive policy roadmap that takes a holistic view of both energy and food security.
It calls for measures to accelerate yield improvements in pulses and oilseeds to restore their relative profitability, avoid distortions in input and output markets that confer undue advantages on specific ethanol feedstocks, and enable targeted, planned expansion of ethanol crops aligned with regional resource endowments.
