GHANAOUR(Patiala): Union Minister of State (Independent Charge), New and Renewable Energy Vilas Muttemwar today unveiled the foundation stone of a path-breaking project for the generation of power from rice straw and other farm wastes at village Ghanaur in Patiala District.

Union Minister of Power Sushil Kumar Shinde and Punjab Chief Minister Capt. Amarinder Singh were also present at this important event. 

This 12 MW Biomass Power Porject will be the first out of nine similar projects to be set up in rural Punjab. This plant will become operational within two years followed by other similar units which will come up within four years, generating a total of 108 MW of electricity. 

These unique 'farmer to farmer' projects, all located in rural areas, will provide valuable extra power to farmers, besides providing additional income to some 10,000 to 15,000 farmers located around each project area, from the sale of   agricultural wastes.

The project will also be major milestone in the area of environment protection in three ways. Firstly, it will convert agriculture waste to valuable energy. Secondly, it will reduce the release of smoke and other pollutants caused by the burning of over 100,000 million tons of these wastes into the atmosphere, contributing to global warming. Lastly, the plants will also use no non-renewable fossil fuels and will therefore also earn valuable Carbon Credits. 

The project has been a major thrust area for the Punjab Government, the Punjab State Electricity Board, the Dept. of Science & Technology and other state government organizations who have all worked to develop this project.