New Delhi, June 4 -- India's first flex-fuel vehicles are here, with Maruti Suzuki India Ltd and Hero Motocorp Ltd, unveiling versions of their entry-level models. The launch of these vehicles, which can run fully on ethanol, comes at a time when the Centre is looking to increase ethanol blending to cut crude oil imports.

While Maruti introduced the flex-fuel version of its entry-level model WagonR on Thursday, Hero rolled out similar versions of its HF Deluxe and Splendor+ a day earlier. More automakers are expected to follow in the next 12 months, with Tata Motors Passenger Vehicles Ltd having earlier committed to launching its flex-fuel model by early next year. With this, India follows Brazil, which adopted flex-fuel technologies beg...