Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who addressed the group via videoconference, claimed that the ethanol facility, which is estimated to cost Rs 900 crore, will provide a long-term solution to the problem of stubble burning on farms. A similar amount of Rs 50,000 crore was given to farmers when the nation’s second-generation ethanol plant was dedicated, stated Modi.
Farmers will also be able to profit from their stubble, Modi continued. Production of ethanol doubled in eight years, rising from 40 billion to 400 billion liters. He claimed that the second-generation ethanol facility in Panipat would aid in the purging of the air in Delhi and Haryana. Second-generation ethanol production facilities employ non-food biomass as a feedstock to create biofuel. The plant will employ 2 lakh tonnes of rice straw annually to make about 3 crore liters of ethanol. It will also result in a reduction in greenhouse gas emissions.
According to the prime minister, the facility will considerably help our farmers and support initiatives to raise the production and consumption of biofuels. According to Modi, 75% of homes would have access to piped gas in a few years in terms of clean fuels.
Later on Oil Minister Hardeep Singh Puri in his statement said that India will start supplying gasoline with 20% ethanol at a few select gas stations in April of next year and will increase supplies after that as part of its efforts to lessen its dependency on foreign oil imports and address environmental concerns. Ethanol will make up one-fifth of gasoline by the year 2025, according to the Oil Minister.
