The truth behind the government's lackadaisical attitude is that most of the illegal auto-rickshaws run with the support of Citu, the labour wing of the ruling CPM, they allege. "If the number of legal autos in the city is 25,000, illegal ones are double that number. So, the conversion will hardly make a difference," said auto-emission consultant S M Ghosh, who is also the general secretary of city-based Clean Technology Developers' Association.

However, according to Citu leader Kishore Ghosh, who controls the auto union, steps are being taken to remove illegal autos from the city. "We have come to an agreement with the government that we just cannot let illegal autos run on city roads. Each auto operator must have valid documents. Once this is ensured, the rest of the things (like conversion) would automatically fall in place," he assured.

The auto unions have also demanded more LPG dispensing stations along the major auto routes. "The number of LPG stations is too little compared to the demand. Significantly, some of the existing stations do not even fall on the auto routes. So, an auto-rickshaw might have to travel a long distance just to refill the tank. Moreover, the supply is not as regular as with petrol and diesel. Once we convert to a dedicated LPG mode, we cannot wait for the supply. The government must keep these things in mind," said another auto-rickshaw union leader.

However, Indian Oil Corporation officials said oil companies have no immediate plan to have more LPG dispensing stations. "Currently, the demand is very low compared to our installed capacity. If the government is really serious about it, we can proceed on having more LPG stations. But we will first see the demand and only then, proceed about it," they added.