Bhubaneshwar: A memorandum of understanding (MoU) has been inked between Bharat Petroleum Corporation Limited (BPCL) and Odisha University of Agriculture and Technology (OUAT) for production of biofuel from paddy based straw. The BPCL’s technology partnership with OUAT is aimed at effective utilization of rice straw for biofuel production in a biochemical enzymatic process with the financial support of Rs 5 crore.
Out of the total budget, Rs 2 crore will be used as a corpus for BPCL chair and Rs 3 crore as research contingency for development, establishment, and popularization of the biofuel production technology.
The MoU was signed in presence of Union Minister of Petroleum and Natural Gas and Skill Development and Entrepreneurship, Dharmendra Pradhan, Orissa Agriculture Secretary, Saurabh Garg and OUAT Vice Chancellor, Surendranath Pasupalak.
Odisha witnesses an annual production of 85 lakh tonnes rice with the approximate production of 100 lakh tonnes of paddy straw. The bulk of the straw is used for fodder and other domestic purposes while there was no proper economic utilization of the paddy straw as of now.