GOBARdhan Bioenergy Scheme: Rs 23,731 Crore CBG Plan
Why in the news
The Union Cabinet cleared a large programme that turns the 2018 GOBARdhan waste initiative into a national clean-energy and circular-economy mission centred on CBG.
Key facts
- Nodal ministry: Petroleum and Natural Gas.
- Feedstock: crop residue such as paddy straw, cattle dung, sugar-mill press mud, municipal organic waste, other biomass.
- Outputs: CBG blended into CNG (vehicles) and PNG (kitchens), plus fermented organic manure from digestate.
- Aims: cut imported gas dependence, build a circular bioeconomy, attract private money, create rural jobs.
Six growth engines
- Guaranteed purchase by City Gas Distribution entities.
- Stable administered price giving bankable revenue.
- Capital assistance for plants.
- Pipelines linking plants to the grid.
- Credit guarantee for bank lending.
- Challenge Fund for innovation and feedstock supply chains.
Background
| Year | Development |
|---|---|
| 2018 | SATAT began under MoPNG, promising purchase by oil marketing companies; slow due to feedstock, pricing and finance gaps |
| 2018 | GOBARdhan started within SBM (Grameen), Ministry of Jal Shakti |
| 2023 | One GOBARdhan registration portal lists biogas and CBG plants |
| Budget 2023-24 | 500 waste-to-wealth plants (200 CBG, 75 of them urban; 300 community or cluster) for about Rs 10,000 crore |
| 2025-26 | CBG blending obligation starts at 1% of CNG and PNG, reaching about 5% by 2028-29 |
Fermented organic manure gets Market Development Assistance at Rs 1,500 a tonne.
Significance
- Stubble, dung and urban waste become energy, easing smoke and methane.
- CBG displaces imported LNG and diesel, aiding energy security.
- Digestate manure reduces chemical fertiliser use.
Exam angle
- Outlay Rs 23,731 crore; nodal ministry Petroleum and Natural Gas.
- Full form: Galvanising Organic Bio-Agro Resources Dhan.
- Related terms: SATAT, CBG blending obligation.