SBM-GOBARDHAN (Syllabus: GS Paper 2 – Govt Schemes)
Context: Recently, the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs (MoHUA) organized the 'SBM-GOBARdhan Biogas Conference in partnership with GIZ, Circular Waste Solutions, and UNIDO at Bharat Mandapam, New Delhi.
GOBARdhan Scheme:
- Launched in: April 2018.
- Part of: Swachh Bharat Mission (Grameen).
- Ministry involved: Department of Drinking Water & Sanitation (Ministry of Jal Shakti).
- Aim: To positively impact village cleanliness and generate wealth and energy from cattle and organic waste.
oCreate new rural livelihood opportunities and enhancing income for farmers and other rural people.
- Objectives
oSafely manage cattle and agricultural waste in villages, thereby enhancing cleanliness.
oConvert organic waste into biogas and organic manure for rural utilization.
oPromote environmental sanitation and control vector-borne diseases in rural areas.
oCreate rural employment and income generation opportunities by involving entrepreneurs, Self-Help Groups (SHGs), and youth groups in setting up GOBARdhan units.
COMPRESSED BIOGAS (CBG)
- What? A highly purified biogas comprising of up to 90% methane with high calorific value, a perfect green renewable automotive fuel.
- Less emission: It produces 20-60 percent less emissions in comparison to fossil fuels.
- Reduced import: On imported Liquid Natural Gas, hence saving the forex reserves.
- Green source: Generated from the bio-waste sources like agricultural residue, cattle dung, filter cake.
- Benefits: Helps farmer in enhancing their income, enhance infrastructure development leading to rural development, job creation among others – making it a classic case of sustainable development.
oCBG is also being considered to produce Green Hydrogen and could be used as a replacement for Piped Natural Gas for domestic use.
