Bio gas from kitchen waste
A small village called Belamagi in Gulbarga district has witnessed a notable transformation, thanks to a bio-gas project. Started as a self-reliance project, the bio-gas project has brought smiles on the faces of many women.
"Earlier, we used to discard kitchen waste, but now, not even a handful of waste is thrown out. All of this waste gets converted into fuel," said Jyothi, a housewife. "Even preparing a cup of tea used to be a difficult job. Bio gas has made our lives much easier," she added.
Lighting up the traditional mud stove was a herculean task for the women in the village. Moreover, the smoke from these stoves were hazardous to people's health. To find a solution to all these problems, 'Parivarthan' a non-profit organisation started a scheme under which rural people can acquire a unit of 'kitchen waste to cooking gas'.
"I have seen many women struggling to prepare food on the wooden oven. They use dried cow dung cakes, stalks and wooden pieces along with kerosene as fuel. In this process, they have to inhale hazardous smoke and suffer from many health problems. This is quite common in the rural areas," points out G Panduranga Rao, Director of 'Parivarthan'.
After retiring from the Agriculture Department, Panduranga Rao founded 'Parivarthan', an organisation to improve livelihood opportunities among farmers and rural people.
Inspired by a newspaper piece on a project to convert kitchen waste into cooking gas, he contacted Shamasundar, chairperson of renewable energy department at National Institute of Engineering, Mysore.
Thereafter, some people from Balemagi, V K Salagar and Kadaganchi visited Mysore for a demonstration on cooking gas production units. The National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD) came forward to assist villagers to establish such units. Out of the total cost of Rs 5.92 lakh, the bank sanctioned Rs 5.22 lakh and the beneficiaries and 'Parivarthan' pitched in with the remaining amount. So, 20 units were installed in three villages including Belamagi.
The unit works in a simple way. It requires two (big and small) plastic drums and hose pipes as main components of the production unit and a stove to prepare food. A mixture of wet cow dung and water is poured in a big tank.
A small tank has to be installed on the big tank and kitchen waste is to be filled. After a week, cooking gas is produced automatically.
"If the quantity of waste is less, people find alternative ways. One of them is to go to the flour mill and buy waste flour. This flour is mixed with water and poured into the tank. That's all," explains Panduranga Rao. The main advantage of this unit is that any kind of kitchen waste can be used. It may be rice, chapathi, rotti, vegetable, tea powder or rotting fruits...anything can be poured into the tank. This generates bio gas that lasts two-three hours a day, which is sufficient for a day's cooking.
A small village called Belamagi in Gulbarga district has witnessed a notable transformation, thanks to a bio-gas project. Started as a self-reliance project, the bio-gas project has brought smiles on the faces of many women.
"Earlier, we used to discard kitchen waste, but now, not even a handful of waste is thrown out. All of this waste gets converted into fuel," said Jyothi, a housewife. "Even preparing a cup of tea used to be a difficult job. Bio gas has made our lives much easier," she added.
Lighting up the traditional mud stove was a herculean task for the women in the village. Moreover, the smoke from these stoves were hazardous to people's health. To find a solution to all these problems, 'Parivarthan' a non-profit organisation started a scheme under which rural people can acquire a unit of 'kitchen waste to cooking gas'.
"I have seen many women struggling to prepare food on the wooden oven. They use dried cow dung cakes, stalks and wooden pieces along with kerosene as fuel. In this process, they have to inhale hazardous smoke and suffer from many health problems. This is quite common in the rural areas," points out G Panduranga Rao, Director of 'Parivarthan'.
After retiring from the Agriculture Department, Panduranga Rao founded 'Parivarthan', an organisation to improve livelihood opportunities among farmers and rural people.
Inspired by a newspaper piece on a project to convert kitchen waste into cooking gas, he contacted Shamasundar, chairperson of renewable energy department at National Institute of Engineering, Mysore.
Thereafter, some people from Balemagi, V K Salagar and Kadaganchi visited Mysore for a demonstration on cooking gas production units. The National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD) came forward to assist villagers to establish such units. Out of the total cost of Rs 5.92 lakh, the bank sanctioned Rs 5.22 lakh and the beneficiaries and 'Parivarthan' pitched in with the remaining amount. So, 20 units were installed in three villages including Belamagi.
The unit works in a simple way. It requires two (big and small) plastic drums and hose pipes as main components of the production unit and a stove to prepare food. A mixture of wet cow dung and water is poured in a big tank.
A small tank has to be installed on the big tank and kitchen waste is to be filled. After a week, cooking gas is produced automatically.
"If the quantity of waste is less, people find alternative ways. One of them is to go to the flour mill and buy waste flour. This flour is mixed with water and poured into the tank. That's all," explains Panduranga Rao. The main advantage of this unit is that any kind of kitchen waste can be used. It may be rice, chapathi, rotti, vegetable, tea powder or rotting fruits...anything can be poured into the tank. This generates bio gas that lasts two-three hours a day, which is sufficient for a day's cooking.