Haryana Government to set up Biogas plants in 3 districts

Haryana Government is going to set up crop residue-based compressed biogas plants in Kurukshetra, Kaithal and Jind districts.

Facts :

• To tackle the issue of straw burning and to promote paddy straw-based biomass power projects in the state, HAREDA has floated a Request for Proposal (RFP) for setting up such plants on pilot basis in Karnal, Kurukshetra, Ambala, Kaithal, Jind and Fatehabad districts.
• In Haryana, paddy crop was mainly sown on 13 lakh hectares area in 10 districts.
• As per the data from HARSAC (Haryana Space Applications Centre, Hisar) the crop residue burning cases were reported on 12,473 places in the state in 2017.
• Similarly, this year such cases were reported on 7,273 places which are only one per cent of the total area.
• Besides, an MOU has been signed between the Haryana government and Indian Oil Corporation (IOCL) for setting up bio-CNG plants based on paddy straw and other agri-waste in the state.
• Under MoU,crop residue would be purchased for the plants from the farmers to generated energy.
• The first such compressed biogas plant (CBP) is likely to be set up in Kurukshetra.
• With the signing of MOU, the IOCL would start work on the setting up of these plants in other districts of Haryana as well.
• 100 Tonnes per day(TPD) agro residue feed stock capacity biogas plant could produce about 10 TPD compressed biogas and 30 TPD dry manure.
• The cost of such a plant is about Rs 35 crore and requires six to ten acres of land.
• Department of Renewable Energy, Govt of Haryana (HAREDA) was also providing incentives under Sub-Mission on Agriculture Mechanization (SMAM) on demonstration at Rs 4,000 per hectare to farmers who have purchased the machinery on subsidy and want to run it for straw management demonstration purpose.
• The chief secretary to Haryana Government has constituted two committees - a committee comprising of members of the revenue, agriculture, district development and panchayat departments who would monitor the sensitive villages; whereas the committee of the sub-divisional officer and tehsildar would visit different villages of the district from time to time.
• On October 30, the National Green Tribunal (NGT) had asked the Delhi, Haryana, Punjab and Uttar Pradesh governments to ensure that its farmers do not cause a spike in pollution levels by burning farm waste.
• A bench headed by NGT Chairperson Justice Adarsh Kumar Goel also asked the state governments to provide machinery that would help poor and marginal farmers remove the farm waste without having to set it on fire.

Analysis :

• The period between October 15 and November 25 is very crucial as this is the period when maximum cases of crop-residue burning are reported.
• The Haryana government intends to promote agriculture waste based biomass or waste to compressed biogas or Bio CNG plants in the state to tackle the issue of crop residue burning and scientific disposal of agriculture waste.
• This will not only increase farmers' income by sale of crop residue but also create rural employment opportunities.
• Moreover, the production of compressed biogas on a commercial scale will have several benefits, including reducing pollution due to crop burning and providing an economic alternative to crop residue, providing additional sources of revenue to farmers, rural employment and value creation in the rural economy.
• The compressed biogas is similar to the commercially available CNG in its composition and energy potential and hence it could be utilised as a green automotive fuel.
• Compressed biogas with about 96 per cent methane content would be better than CNG (about 86 per cent methane) and would have better combustion qualities.
• Chief Secretary Dhesi, said, “Haryana is being blamed for increasing environment pollution but actually, crop residue was burned on only two per cent area under paddy in Haryana during last year whereas this year, the crop residue was burned on only one per cent.
   

By: Harman Sandhu