Gobardhan Yojana: It is an aspirational scheme of the government of India that aims to encourage initiatives taking waste to wealth projects in rural regions. This scheme, launched under the Swachh Bharat Mission, aims to convert cattle dung and other organic waste into biogas, compost and bio-slurry which can play an important role in establishing a sustainable ecosystem that will provide economic and environmental benefits to the rural household.
Q. When Gobardhan yojana started?
In this regard, the Ministry of Jal Shakti officially launched Gobardhan Yojana (National Scheme for the invention and Implementation of Biogas Power Generation), on 30th April 2018. It is part of the Swachh Bharat Mission Grameen (SBM-G), a programme to enhance sanitation and waste management in rural India}}. The scheme is also part of India’s overall commitment to environmental sustainability and energy self-reliance.
The program has gradually picked up and some of the states like Haryana, Maharashtra and Karnataka have undertaken state projects on large scales. The scheme seeks to convert bio-waste into an asset by tapping the vast potential of India’s rural livestock economy.
Goals of Gobardhan Yojana
The Gobardhan Yojana has multiple objectives:
Recycling: Generate bio-energy from organic waste such as cattle dung, agricultural residue and kitchen waste.
Production of Clean Energy: Biogas or Compressed biogas (CBG) for rural households and commercial applications.
Enhanced Hygiene: Minimize open defecation and improper waste disposal through organized waste collection.
Generation of income: Supports farmers & rural households to generate supplementary income by selling bio-waste.
Environmental Sustainability: Reduce GHG emissions by means of enhanced waste disposal techniques and greater utilization of renewable energy.
What are the Benefits of Gobardhan Yojana For Villagers?
Here are some transformation ways how Gobardhan Yojana will directly affect rural household and communities:
Economic Benefits
Farmers have an opportunity to earn more income by selling cattle dung, agricultural residue and other organic waste.
Bio-energy plants provide jobs in rural regions, including collection, processing and distribution.
Profits from selling by-products — such as compost and bio-slurry, which are organic fertilizers — increase productivity on farms.
Stat: The Ministry of Jal Shakti says one biogas plant generates 4.5 metric tons of organic manure a year, saving farmers up to ₹7,000 in chemical fertilizers per hectare.
Energy Self-Reliance
The biogas generated through the scheme can be used as an alternative for liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) while cooking and heating and aids in reducing reliance on fossil fuels.
CBG can be utilized as fuel for transport or to create electricity, providing energy solutions for rural households.
Sanitation and Hygiene
Proper waste management tackles dumping of waste into public spaces or water bodies too which enhances the hygiene and helps avoid diseases.
Toilets connected to biogas plants create an incentive for households to keep it clean and hence are winning strategy of Swachh Bharat Mission.
Environmental Benefits
The scheme leads to efficient use of waste, thereby reducing methane due to open dumping of organic waste.
Encourages the use of renewable energy, thereby helping India achieve its goal to become a Net Zero emitter by 2070.
Fact: The country generates over 313 million tons of organic waste every year, much of which is yet to be tapped for biogas. Utilisation of even a small fraction of this waste can be major contributor towards rural development and energy security.
Empowering Women
Biogas also alleviates drudgery and health risks associated with smoke inhalation for women, who have traditionally been the firewood collectors for cooking.
Success Stories of Gobardhan Yojana
Haryana’s initiativeThe state has set up large biogas plants under Gobardhan Yojana, and more than 300 villages are covered under it with waste being converted into bio-energy and organic manure.
Maharashtra’s Push: Two groups of districts have reported better sanitation and higher farmer incomes by connecting cow shelters and households to biogas units.
Challenges And Moving Forward
Though, the Gobardhan Yojana has made significant progress, however thereare several challenges aheadsome of them being:
Low Awareness in Rural Communities
Initial investment for biogas plants is high.
Problems with logistics of waste collection and processing
To combat these, the government is dealing with public awareness campaigns and involvement in the private sector through public-private partnerships(PPPs).
Conclusion
The Gobardhan Yojana is a huge step for India’s rural economy, which faces issues such as waste management, energy self-reliance and environmental sustainability. The scheme helps uplift rural livelihoods and at the same time, it also ensures a cleaner and greener India while promoting the use of biogas and organic manure.
The Gobardhan Yojana can be codas of rural development in India with more and more participation from local communities along with the support of the government.