The power of dreams
JALANDHAR : For Nakodar farmer, Kewal Singh, the leap from a farmer to an entrepreneur was driven by a concern for environment and to do reduce pollution.
Kewal set up a 6MW capacity bio-mass-based power plant Green Planet Energy Pvt Ltd production unit at Bir village in 2015. The model was simple, he purchased stubble from fellow farmers, used it to generate electricity and sell it to Punjab State Power Corporation Limited (PSPCL). He soon got 15 baler machines that visit farmers’ fields to get the straw in order.
“All my machines have been at work for 24 hours of day for the past month. The plant has the capacity of 75,000 tonne of paddy straw,” said Kewal, adding he earns handsome profit each season. “On an average, a machine generates 3 tonne paddy straw and I pay Rs 1,350 per tonne to a farmer,” Kewal added. Joga Singh from Tut Kalan village in Jalandhar said he had been selling 4-5 tonne of paddy straw to the electricity generation plant and getting Rs 135 per quintal for straw bales.
Another farmer, Sukhdev Singh from Talhan village, said he along with five other farmers, purchased baler machines last year after the state government provided them subsidy.
“We have been selling the stubble to the unit and earning enough profit, while this process has also led to increased fertility in the soil,” said Sukhdev. District agriculture officer Naresh Gulati said a machine with a baler lines up scattered stubble for bales to be easily made.