Siraha, April 29:

Test production of bio fuel has been started in Siraha district in search of an alternative to fossil fuel, as the country solely depends on the import of petroleum products and often faces a serious fuel scarcity.

Although this was being produced commercially in India, South Africa and US, the Integrated Rural Community Development Centre (IRCDC), Lahan has recently started the production of bio fuel, jetropha.

On one hand, people face financial crisis in the use of expensive chemical fertilisers, on the other it deteriorates soil fertility, and jetropha cake can also be used as an alternative fertiliser to increase production.

IRCDC is to install a plant to produce the bio fuel with the cooperation of the GEFSGP of the

United Nations Development Programme (UNDP). The bio fuel is produced from the seeds of jetropha. In Terai and hills, jetropha is found abundantly and is called locally baghandi in Terai and in the hills as ‘sano kadam.’

A bio fuel processing pilot programme will be established with a capacity of producing 250 litre a day in Fulbaribajar of Padariya VDC in Siraha and needs 800 kgs of dried jetropha for it.

Pump sets already run smoothly using bio fuel and farmers can save a lot of money, users said. The jetropha plant was first planted in India by president APJ Abdul Kalam in 2004. It was produced since 2003 in USA, Egypt, South Africa, Uganda, and Germany commercially.

Gopal Charity Trust has planted jetropha on 10 kathas of land and Hariyali Kisan Urja Bikas Sahakari Group has set a target to plant it on 100 hectares of public land. The group is to prepare 300,000 jetropha seedlings this year.

The group will run with Rs 4.6 million including Rs 3.6 million of GEFSGP and one million rupees from the community. The plant will produce 75,000 litres annually and 325,000 kgs of fertilizer.