In yet another familiar twist to the mock fume fight being staged in the city for years, the blame game has intensified with the government?s hush-hush move to push back the phase-out deadline of polluting vehicles, yet again.

If the state government on Monday pointed an accusing finger at the petroleum ministry for lack of support in its clean-fuel drive, oil lobby officials insist that the fault lies with Writers? Buildings.

?Hardly 12 per cent of LPG available in nine dispensing stations in the city is presently utilised,? said A.C. Dey, deputy general manager (LPG) of Indian Oil Corporation Limited, at an auto emission seminar organised by the Millennium Institute of Energy & Environment Management.

?All the stations are running at a loss and the government needs to ensure that more vehicles run on LPG,? stressed Dey.

If transport secretary Sumantra Chowdhury stated that the petroleum lobby is not giving adequate importance to the issue, the IOC official alleged that the state government had been ?slow? in obtaining necessary permission for setting up six more LPG stations on Calcutta State Transport Corporation?s land.

Balraj Bhanot of Automotive Research Association of India also stressed that ?unless there was government will?, nothing would change in Calcutta.