Pfoshuo Ariicho
Dimapur | June 7
As a substitute for fast depleting fossil fuel, Bio-diesel has come to stay and Nagaland will be a part of this with the promotion of ‘Jatropha’ plant which, in few years time, is expected to provide the much needed fuel for automobile and also reduce and maintain the price of automobile fuel. Jatropha is a valuable multi-purpose crop used for extracting high quality bio-diesel, which can be used without any blending with normal diesel.
The bio-diesel extracted from the Jatropha plant which is said to be one of the most suitable, environment friendly and recyclable bio diesel has been successfully tested to run auto-vehicles like Mercedes-Benz, said Lawrence Jamang, Chairman and Managing Director, Zingchar Bio-Initiatives (P) Limited.
In recent years, the Indian government has also shown a major interest in Jatropha, and alongside other developing countries, a number of international groups are now sharing this interest. Lawrence Jamang, Chairman and Managing Director, Zingchar Bio-Initiatives (P) Limited, has also tied up with multi national companies like Williamson Magor & Co. Ltd, India and D1 Oil Plc, UK to develop Jatropha plant as a means of economic empowerment and social upliftment of the Naga farmers.
Lawrence Jamang said that bio-diesel has the potential to change the life of rural farmers.
With most of the people deriving their incomes from agriculture, Jamang asserted that ‘jatropha’ has enormous potential to change the situation for better and that poverty can be broken by jatropha cultivation. The wastelands of Nagaland, Manipur and other NE states can be used for the cultivation of Jatropha which, besides providing a source of supplementary income and employment in the rural areas, can be used as a high-grade organic fertilizer, bio gas etc, he added.
Jatropha plant has been found most suitable among many species which can yield oil as a source of energy in the form of bio-diesel, due to its various favorable attributes like hardy nature, short gestation period, high oil recovery and quality of oil etc said Jamang. During a sapling distribution programme at a nursery at Diziephe village, Jamang distributed more than 76 thousand saplings to the farmers of Pishiku village, Heveshe village, Zukhie village and Xukiye village today.
The company, said Jamang, has also entered into contract farming with farmers, who were also provided alternative cropping to compensate their income. The company also has assured farmers of ‘buy back guarantee’ of the seed and also to find market for the alternative crop. With 19 nurseries and operating both in Nagaland and Ukhrul and Senapati district of Manipur, Jamang also said that the farmers were given bank loan facilities.
.jpg)
