Can biofuels be a solution?

Written by Anna da Costa / 26 January 2009 / Read Anna da Costa's latest blog entries.

In the district of Medak, en route from Hyderabad to Solapur, lies a biofuels research site and fledgeling enterprise, Tree Oils India Ltd, founded and Directed by Mr. G Srinavas.

Here, we met with Mr. R Rao and Mr. S Sharma, who are working to develop a partnership with the University of Hyderabad to understand how biofuels can be farmed sustainably, what their impact on the soil and local environment will be, how they can be used to regenerate wastelands and to support local agricultural needs, and whether their production can be a profitable enterprise.

These are important questions for India, where, particularly in rural areas, the need for agricultural land is high, but is also coupled increasingly with the need for a clean, decentralised and local source of fuel.

We made our way through plantations of Jatropha and Pongamia, interspersed with food crops and trees, where a series of trials were being carried out to see which was the most favourable crop. The difference in trees is immediately apparent, Jatropha looking spiky and almost cactus like, having recently shed its leaves, and Pongamia being taller, with lush thick leaves.

Questions as to which is the more productive and suitable crop for biofuel plantations, where they are appropriate and profitable and where they are not are crucial to be asked in respect to the Indian context.