On the occasion of ‘World Biofuel Day’ Prime Minister Narendra Modi has set a target to triple ethanol production in four years to help save Rs 12,000 crore in oil import bill by mixing the sugarcane extract in petrol as well as boost farm income.
Rs 10,000 crore is being invested in setting up 12 bio-refineries in the country that will produce fuel from crop stubble and residue as well as urban waste.
Biofuels can help reduce import dependency on crude oil. They can contribute to a cleaner environment, generate additional income for farmers and create rural jobs. Fuel generated from sugarcane and crop residue not only gives additional income to farmers but also helps the environment by the safe disposal of farm stubble.
The target, he said, is to raise ethanol production for doping in petrol to 450 crore litres in four years that will save Rs 12,000 crore in import bill. India spent nearly USD 88 billion (about Rs 5.9 lakh crore) on import of crude oil in 2017-18.
India started blending ethanol, produced as a by-product during the process of making sugar from sugarcane, in petrol during the first NDA regime in 2002. But the program slowed almost to a grinding halt in the 10-year rule of Congress-led UPA.
The world’s third largest oil consumer is dependent on imports to meet 81 per cent of its needs and substituting some of the fuel with biofuels will help cut import dependence.
Reference- Financial Express, TOI, PTI News Feed