TSCOST comes up with bio-digester to produce methane gas

Hyderabad: A small but significant technological intervention by the Telangana State Council of Science and Technology (TSCOST) is all set to save about Rs 40,000 per month to the social welfare residential schools and hostels in the State.

According to the TSCOST Project Officer M Nagesh, the TSCOST has come up with a bio-waste digester to convert a daily bio-waste of leftover foods and vegetables of 75 kilograms into methane gas.

In turn, it will be used to produce bio-gas for the hostels to be used for cooking purpose. The 15 cubic metre bio-digesters balloon volume has the potential to save nearly 7 to 8 commercial LPG cylinders that are being used by these schools in a month.

Also, in case of those using firewood, it will save about two to three tons of firewood in a month. Further, usage of the bio-digester will reduce leaving carbon dioxide into the atmosphere and contribute to the reduction of the carbon footprint.

"The bio-digester is commissioned with cow dung initially and the bio-waste coming from the hostels and schools are used to produce the methane gas to be used. As per the calculations arrived at, each school can save around Rs 40,000 to Rs 50,000 per month," he said.

Seeing the advantage of the intervention initially it was installed at the National Institute of Rural Development and Panchayat Raj (NIRDPR), National Institute of Technology (NIT), Warangal and CCMB, Hyderabad on a pilot basis.

As it is working fine, now the State government has sanctioned to install 18 more in the welfare schools and hostels, he said.