Delhi: State-run Indian Oil Corporation Ltd  on Sunday launched a special winter-grade diesel that remains unfrozen up to minus 33 degree Celsius.

The fuel would help provide year-round access to snow-capped border regions, and is part of India’s efforts to speed up strategic road connectivity. This new fuel will help Indian security forces to stock up on crucial supplies and ammunition that gets cut off due to bad weather in winters.

“Motorists in high-altitude sectors like Ladakh, Kargil, Kaza and Keylong face the problem of freezing of diesel in their vehicles when winter temperatures drop to as low as -30o Celsius. Indian Oil has come up with an innovative solution to this problem by introducing a special winter-grade diesel with a low pour-point of -33o Celsius, which does not lose its fluidity function even in extreme winter conditions,” petroleum ministry said in a statement.

“Speaking on the occasion, Hon’ble Home Minister, Amit Shah, congratulated the people of Ladakh for getting their long-pending demand fulfilled by getting union territory status for Ladakh. The new status will accelerate the pace of holistic development of the region and bring prosperity to the people at par with the rest of India,” the statement said.