Bio-Energy Alliance formed

Tribune News Service 

Jalandhar, March 4

On the last day of the second international conference on ‘Recent Advances in Bio-energy Research’ at the Sardar Swaran Singh National Institute of Bio-Energy (SSS-NIBE), Kapurthala, an autonomous institution of the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE), Government of India, a Bio-Energy Alliance (BEA) was formed in order to support the national efforts to develop technology and promote the use of bioenergy and biofuels. 

During the meeting, the representatives of different organisations including academic and research institutions, universities, industries and foreign delegations, were present. The objectives of the alliance include providing a platform for all stakeholders, from policy makers to end-users; to interact and facilitate progressive supplementing and replacement of petroleum fuels by biofuels; to make recommendations to different national and international funding agencies including government departments (both public and private sector) for allocation of funds for R&D in selected areas of bioenergy; to encourage networking between R&D institutions and joint projects between R&D institutions and industries; to bring to the attention of policy makers such issues which need to be addressed to facilitate the improvement of bio-energy and bio-fuel technology; to organise exchange visits of scientists and technology suppliers; to organise round table and brain storming sessions on bioenergy; and to create awareness on bioenergy and biofuel. 

A founder governing body was constituted during the meeting to get the BEA registered. Prof Yogender Kumar Yadav, director general, SSS-NIBE, was elected as the founder president and Dr Sachin Kumar, deputy director, SSS-NIBE, was elected as the secretary. Joint secretary from Lovely Professional University and treasurer Dr AK Sharma, director, SSS-NIBE, were also elected in the meeting unanimously. 

Other representatives from MNRE, New Delhi; DBT, New Delhi; IREDA, New Delhi; PEDA, Chandigarh; IIT, Guwahati; IIT, Kharagpur; IIT, Ropar; NIT, Jalandhar; GNDU, Amritsar;  PAU, Ludhiana; Tezpur University, Tezpur; SBBS University, Jalandhar; PERC, Chennai; Novozyme Asia Ltd; PECMA, Delhi; and Sampurn Agri Ventures, Chandigarh, were proposed as executive members of the alliance. Several agendas such as membership, raising funds, logo, website design, and manpower were discussed and approved by the general body of bio-energy alliance.

Prof Yadav said the Bio-Energy Alliance would be registered under the Societies Registration Act, 1860 and initially it would function in the premises of the SSS-NIBE, Kapurthala. After the registration, the membership of the alliance would be opened to individuals, government organisations, academic institutions, universities, NGO, non-profit organisations, entrepreneurs, industries, stakeholders, etc to participate. 

It was also decided that the alliance would conduct the training, workshop, conferences, seminars and awareness programmes to resolve the problems related to commercialisation of technologies in bio-energy sector. The alliance would help to sort out the issues for the promotion of bioenergy in consultation with policy makers and would assist them to frame policies for the betterment of bio-energy technologies, commercialisation and end users.