78 new plants to be set up to make biogas from crop residue in Uttar Pradesh

An important initiative has been launched by the Uttar Pradesh government to use crop residue as an economic source, as part of which there is a plan to establish 78 more biogas plants in the state. According to an NDTV report, the agriculture department stated in a press release that 40 biogas plants are currently operational in the state. The main objective of this initiative is to collect stubble, meaning crop residue, from the fields and send it to compressed biogas (CBG) plants, where it is converted into biogas. The organic residue left after the process is used as manure.

This initiative has proved very beneficial for farmers in Barabanki district, reducing both the time and cost involved in cleaning the fields after harvesting. Yogesh, a farmer from Karamat Kheda village in Harakh block who cultivates wheat, paddy and potatoes, stated that timely removal of stubble allows them to prepare their fields for the next crop without any delay. Earlier, farmers either had to bear the cost of removing the residue or burn it to clean the field quickly. Balram, a farmer from Tikra village, stated that the cost of clearing stubble from one acre of land ranged from approximately ₹2,500 to ₹3,000. He added that now delivering the stubble to the biogas plant saves farmers the cost of cleaning the field and they can avoid burning crop residue.

According to the agriculture department, this model has been developed with the technical support of the Gates Foundation's Technical Support Unit (TSU). Farmer Producer Organizations (FPOs), aggregators and other participants involved in the supply chain have been linked in this system. FPOs and aggregators help in mapping fields, coordinating collection schedules and removing stubble immediately after harvesting. Machines like slashers, rakes and balers are used to cut and bundle the residue, which is then sent to collection centers and CBG plants. This process has also generated employment in the fields of cutting, collecting, baling, transporting and processing stubble.

The CBG plant located on Dewa Road in Barabanki processes about 150 tonnes of stubble daily and produces about 15,000 to 19,000 kg of biogas daily. Paddy and maize residues are used in this plant, whose use as cattle fodder is limited because they have a relatively high silica content. Umesh Kumar Sah, Deputy Director of Agriculture, Barabanki, stated that due to the CBG plants at Dewa Road and Haidergarh, the scope of stubble collection has increased in Harakh, Haidergarh, Fatehpur and Ramnagar blocks. This initiative not only provides financial benefits to farmers but has also recorded a decrease in the practice of burning stubble, which harms the environment.

Uttar Pradesh is India's most populous state and holds a leading position in the agricultural sector. Agriculture has a major contribution to the state's economy, where paddy and wheat are taken as main crops. In the past, the practice of stubble burning by farmers for the disposal of post-harvest residue caused serious problems of air pollution, to control which efforts are being made by the government at various levels.