Coimbatore: The department of bioenergy at the Tamil Nadu Agricultural University (TNAU) on Saturday unveiled its plans to conduct a skill development programme in generating biogas and organic manure. Pointing out that they had been carrying out biogas projects for long, sources with TNAU said this year they have planned a programme to skill women on the technical aspects of constructing biogas plants.
A communication from TNAU said the ministry of new and renewable energy has sanctioned various training programmes to the Biogas Development and Training Centre under the New National Biogas and Organic Manure Programme at TNAU for 2018-19. Under this, the university would conduct two programmes - one is turnkey workers training meant for unemployed youth and another for women entrepreneurs and farmers or farmers’ recognised groups.
S Pugalendhi, head of department of bioenergy, said the turnkey persons training would involve all the technical aspects of setting up a biogas plant right from site identification, testing the soil type to selecting materials for construction. The skill development programme is aimed at making women self-employed.
Pugalendhi said the programme draws importance in the background of subsidies being cut for LPG cooking gas and the centre offering subsidies for biogas plants. “Not only cow dung, the plant can use any organic waste such as food waste and create biogas. It will also produce organic manure,” Pugalendhi said. The organic manure could be used for organic farming.
He said there was not much awareness about the construction and functioning of biogas plants. Proper care should be taken in the construction of plants, he said. In addition to providing employment, the project would help in implementing sustainability and sanitation. In the case of a house being newly constructed, the biogas plant could also double as the sceptic tank, he said.
To join the programme, eligible candidates have to send their details to the Department of Bioenergy, Agricultural Engineering College and Research Institute, Tamil Nadu Agricultural University, on or before October 31.
