Gandhinagar, Wednesday: In his address, after the foundation stone laying of KribhCo’s (Krishakbharti Co-Op. Ltd.) Bio-Ethanol Project to be prepared at a cost of Rs. 350 crores and 2.50 lakh liters per day capacity located in Hazira, Surat, Union Home and Cooperation Minister Shri Amit Shah in the special presence of Chief Minister Shri Bhupendra Patel said that due to ethanol mix, Rs. 46,000 crores have been saved on crude oil imports. It simply means that, as a result of the hard work of farmers producing crops like sugarcane, maize, paddy, this an amount of Rs. 46,000 crores have reached them.
Union Home Minister also announced that Multi State Co-operative Society will be created for promotion of cooperative sector and export of organic products.
At Sahkarita Sammelan (Co-operative convention) organized under Azadi ka Amrit Mahotsav at Amrapali open air theatre, KribhCo Township and groundbreaking of Bio ethanol plant, he further said that due to the Ethanol Blending Project, corn will be purchased from the farmers on a large scale, which will open up new avenues of income for them. Also, the door of economic prosperity of the farmers growing corn, sugarcane, paddy will be opened.
The Prime Minister has set a target of blending 20 percent ethanol in petrol by the year 2025, and half of the target i.e. the target of 10 percent ethanol blending has been achieved five months ago, the Home Minister stated that blending ethanol in petrol will benefit the country’s exchequer by 1 lakh crores by 2025.
Stating that co-operative sector is the only means to bring the country’s poor, oppressed, deprived, exploited, downtrodden, backward communities into the mainstream, the Home Minister said that the country’s co-operatives are continuously working to make industries sustainable and productive to boost the campaign of Atmanirbhar Bharat. Referring to the fact that India is gaining an important place in the world in biofuels, the Union Cooperation Minister said that along with cleanliness and self-reliance, waste i.e. garbage is also being used in an important way. Today recycling is being promoted in the country. The name of bio ethanol has also been added to similar efforts. With this, many ordinary farmer families will not have to depend on other countries in the fuel sector, and new energy, new momentum will be imparted to the country’s economy.
Chief Minister Shri Bhupendra Patel said that due to excessive consumption of fuel, huge foreign exchange has to be paid through import of crude oil and the economy is also affected, along with the continuous increase in fuel consumption due to industrial development, environment is also being adversely affected.
Chief Minister expressed a clear view that the ethanol blending project at the Hazira plant in KribhCo will be important in realizing the dream of self-sufficiency in fuel. Welcoming the new dimension of a prestigious cooperative organization like KribhCo, the Chief Minister said that this plant will lead Gujarat in a new direction of eco-friendly project development.
Chief Minister also added that the Prime Minister has established the Ministry of Cooperation for the first time in the country to provide new energy and impetus to the cooperative structure of the country with the mantra of “Sahkar thi Samruddhi”, which will also contribute significantly in making the country a five trillion-dollar economy.
Congratulating the KribhCo family for their vision, the Chief Minister further said that after obtaining ethanol from this project, additional animal feed of around 36 thousand metric tons will be available annually, which will meet the demand of cattle, fish and poultry feed and will also strengthen the rural economy. The plant in Hazira will be beneficial for sugarcane and sugar related cooperative units of South Gujarat.
Union Minister of State for Railways and Textiles Smt. Darshana Jardosh, President of Indian National Co-operative Union Shri Dilip Sanghani, Chairman of KribhCo and International Cooperative Alliance Asia Pacific Dr. Chandra Pal Singh, Chairman of Indian National Agricultural Cooperative Marketing Federation Ltd. (NAFED) and Director of KribhCo Dr. Bijender Singh and Vice chairman of KribhCo Shri V. Sudhakar Chowdary, including senior officials of the central and state governments were present.
