Punjab pushes for biogas plants to tackle stubble burning amid resistance challenges
stubble burning
and promote clean energy, Punjab is intensifying the push towards compressed biogas (CBG) production using paddy straw. The Punjab Pollution Control Board (PPCB), as part of the stubble management plan for the current year, has also submitted a comprehensive plan regarding this.
However, the green energy transition is encountering obstacles in rural Punjab, where village-level opposition is emerging as a key challenge.
The CBG plants aim to reduce the state's dependence on stubble burning by diverting crop residue to generate biogas. According to data from the Punjab Energy Development Agency (PEDA), a total of 14.8 lakh tonnes of paddy straw is projected to be collected by 2025 under ex-situ management efforts.
This includes 11.70 lakh tonnes to be handled through 11 operational biomass power projects with a combined capacity of 101.5 MW.
Additionally, 60 CBG projects are in the pipeline, with a total capacity of 852.68 tonnes per day (TPD) CBG. Of these, six projects with a capacity of 107.48 TPD are already operational in Khanna, Sangrur, Moga, Fatehgarh Sahib, Patiala, and Hoshiarpur. These are expected to utilise 2.50 lakh tonnes of straw.
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Four more projects of 45 TPD are set to become operational by the financial year 2025-26, contributing 0.60 lakh tonnes. The remaining 50 projects, including ventures by the HPCL, GAIL, Reliance, and BPCL, are expected to be commissioned within the next one and a half to two years.
To scale up the initiative, PEDA has partnered with the public sector undertakings (PSUs) such as GAIL India Limited, Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Limited (HPCL), and Bharat Petroleum Corporation Limited (BPCL) under which a total of 22 CBG plants with a combined capacity of 280 TPD are in the pipeline, with the potential to consume 9.4 lakh tonnes of paddy straw annually.
The GAIL has been allocated 10 plants with a total capacity of 150 TPD (5 lakh tonnes paddy straw annually). The HPCL will set up 10 plants totalling 100 TPD (3.4 lakh tonnes annually), while the BPCL has been allotted two plants of 15 TPD each (1 lakh tonnes annually). These projects are supported by joint surveys conducted by PEDA and the respective PSUs, with Panchayat land identified for lease to host the facilities.
Despite the promising numbers, the project rollout has not been smooth. In Kakrala village of Nabha in Patiala district, a proposed CBG plant was scrapped after the gram sabha unanimously opposed the plan last year. Villagers expressed fears over potential air and water pollution, loss of common land, and unfulfilled promises of local employment.
The project was to be set up on 18 acres of village common land, intended to be leased for 33 years to a private firm via PEDA.
However, the gram sabha of Kakrala village not only rejected the proposal but also demanded the immediate auction of the land for agricultural use.
"Over the last five decades, nearly 80 acres of village land had been diverted to private firms and industrial projects like the Nabha focal point, with no visible benefits to the local population. Currently our village is left with 144 acres of common land, which is mostly cultivated by landless villagers and loss of this land would have resulted in loss of their livelihood," said Bhupinder Singh Kakrala.
Kakrala is not an isolated case. Similar resistance has been reported from other districts in Punjab as well, including Bagga Kalan of Ludhiana. Villagers are raising concerns over transparency, long-term environmental impact, and lack of guarantees regarding community benefits. This grassroots resistance presents a policy challenge for the state govt as it seeks to scale up clean energy projects while ensuring rural participation and consent.
In Ghungrali village of Ludhiana, a CBG plant remained shut for around six months due to protest. "After six-month shutdown, our plant is re-operational as the matter was resolved. Our plant with 12 TPD capacity started operations in 2023, but currently it's operating at 2 TPD. Besides local employment, we are providing solid and liquid fertiliser, free of cost, to around 25 villages falling in our 15 km radius and potato, maize and paddy farmers are benefiting from it," said plant owner KK Kaushal.
"While the potential of CBG plants to reduce stubble burning and generate renewable energy is significant, the success of such projects depends heavily on community trust, inclusive planning, and tangible local benefits. High level committees have been formed to clear the doubts of villagers and persuade them to let the plant come up in Ludhiana as it will benefit the local population and manage the paddy stubble as well," said a PPCB senior official requesting anonymity.
As the govt gears up to enhance paddy straw utilisation to 5.5 lakh tonnes per annum in the current financial year by setting up CBG plants, addressing villagers' concerns about land rights, pollution, and employment will be crucial for the sustainable execution of Punjab's bioenergy ambitions.
Highlighting concerns of the resisting villagers, environmentalist Col Jasjit Singh Gill said: "Resistance among villagers arises after air, water or soil pollution is recorded by such CBG plants. These plants should be located 4 km away from the periphery of the village and proper effluent treatment plants should be installed and operated. The village panchayat should have access for free-check and raw materials that invite flies or insects should be avoided by plant owners.
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