To reduce pollution arising from burning of agricultural waste, a biomass-to-ethanol plant is being set up by the Indian Oil Corporation in Panipat to prepare ethanol from agricultural and other residues, a top government official said.
Expressing concern over the adverse impact of crop residue burning, Haryana Chief Secretary D S Dhesi urged scientists to develop affordable and easy-to-use technology for management of crop residue and other types of waste.
This project should also be profitable, he added. Dhesi was speaking at a workshop on Crop Residue Management, organised at Chaudhary Charan Singh Haryana Agricultural University (CCSHAU), here today.
He said that educating farmers about the impact of crop residue burning on the environment and soil fertility were the need of the hour, and that they should also be provided waste management facilities for effectively curbing the practice.
Principal Secretary, Agriculture Department, Dr Abhilaksh Likhi said that wheat was sown in over 13 lakh hectares in the State, producing 60 lakh tonnes of crop residue.
Therefore, the State government has decided to create awareness amongst the farmers to ensure effective management of this residue, he said.
The campaign would be first initiated in Karnal district, where farmers would be educated about crop waste management at village and block levels from next year onwards and the district would be made crop residue burning-free.
