Amid LPG shortage, Haridwar village shows how biogas can power rural kitchens

Dehradun: Haljora village in Haridwar district has presented an interesting model of rural energy self-sufficiency with community and household biogas plants helping residents tackle the ongoing LPG shortage that has exposed the fragility of cooking fuel supply chains.In Haljora, one of five villages under Ibrahimpur Masahi gram panchayat, a community biogas plant was set up in 2023-24 at a cost of Rs 20 lakh. Powered by dung from around 40 cows, the plant currently serves 20 households but has the capacity to support up to 40. “It guarded the villagers against the ongoing LPG crisis. Each beneficiary has to pay Rs 300 per month,” said pradhan Swami Ghanshyam.Alongside the community plant, 18 household biogas units of two cubic metres each were installed in Haljora over the past two years with the help of non-governmental organisation Bharatiya Agro Industries Foundation’s (BAIF). Across five villages under the gram panchayat, 99 such units were set up. Haljora has around 150 households and a population of over 700.The project, funded by Panasonic Life Solutions India Pvt Ltd, under its CSR initiative, cost Rs 60 lakh, with each unit costing around Rs 55,000 and farmers contributing Rs 3,000 per unit.Families with at least two cattle are eligible for setting up the plant. “Families of four to five people can sustain easily after putting around 7-8 kg of cow dung every day, mixed with water in a 1:1 ratio and without lumps, in the unit. Gas starts forming within two weeks,” said project leader Ram Raksha Joshi.Beneficiaries said the system has reduced fuel costs and firewood use. Ishwar Singh, a villager who owns six cattle, said, “The unit produces more than enough gas for our family. We put in dung once every 2-3 days and also use the fertiliser on our fields.” Nirmala Devi, another villager, said, “We hardly need firewood now and buy LPG cylinders only twice a year. We need cylinders as a backup in extreme winters.” Low temperatures decrease microbial activity, increase slurry viscosity and reduce gas output.Minor technical issues are handled locally, as per the villagers. “Most problems are with valves or pipes and they can be fixed easily,” said Sandesh Kumar, who is trained in the plant’s operations. Encouraged by the results, more residents are planning to adopt the system.The same model but at a larger, commercial scale, operates at Shree Krishnayan Gaushala in Gaindi Khata, Haridwar. Here, an ONGC-backed bio-CNG plant processes 20 to 25 tonnes of dung daily. “This plant has over 1,500 cows. Fuel is produced here for sale,” said Uttarakhand Renewable Energy Development Agency (UREDA) officer Yudhvir Bisht.In similar efforts being made across the state, Dehradun’s Dharkot saw 12 families adopting biogas in 2024-25 and saving around Rs 800 a month. Meanwhile, Doiwala’s Markham Grant cluster has 17 plants since 2024-25 with plans for expansion in 2025-26.In Rudrapur, a different model is at work. A plant here converts segregated organic waste into compressed biogas. Set up by the nagar nigam, it processes wet waste from homes, hotels and markets and produces high-purity methane for industrial use and transport fuel under the Centre’s Sustainable Alternative Towards Affordable Transportation (SATAT) scheme. The plant also generates around 600 kW of electricity daily and produces organic manure sold under the name “Kalyani”.