Potential of Bio-CNG and Solar Micro-Grids in Bihar
How Bio-CNG and Solar Microgrids hold a huge potential for rural poverty reduction in Bihar and be a game changer for circular economy and sustainable livelihood
Achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) requires innovation and integrated approaches that combine technology, with inclusive rural development for a strong circular economy. I feel, the private sector should pursue Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) and Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) commitments to invest in resources that are available in abundance in rural India – work force, agricultural waste and rural enterprise organic waste. I would like to showcase the example of Bihar, which has one of the largest rural unemployment gap in the country. With its rich dairy base and growing emphasis on clean energy, Bihar offers an inspiring example of how renewable energy and ‘waste to wealth’ models can strengthen rural livelihoods and local economy.
Harnessing Bihar’s Dairy and Solar Potential
Bihar is one of India’s largest dairy-producing states, with vast potential for setting up Micro Compressed Biogas (CBG) plants using cow dung, enterprise organic wastes and agri-waste. Additionally, the state’s land and water bodies present promising opportunities for diverse solar installations including floating photovoltaic (FPV) plants, assisting irrigation, bio-floc fishery & electricity for diverse consumption. By developing CBG and solar microgrids, the state can generate significant rural employment while providing clean energy to nano and micro enterprises. Optimal resource utilisation i.e. land, labour and waste can transform rural Bihar through decentralized renewable energy generating employment, promoting rural enterprises and strengthening circular economy.
Bihar produces about 128.5 lakh tonnes of milk annually, implying around 8.6 million milch animals (assuming 1,500 litres per animal per year). Each animal generates about 10 kg dung per day, translating to 31 million tonnes of cow dung annually. With a yield of 45 m³ biogas per tonne, the total potential exceeds 1.4 billion m³ of biogas per year.
At current conversion efficiency (~28 kg of CBG per tonne of dung), even processing 10–30% of dung can produce 87,000–260,000 tonnes of CBG annually. This quantum is sufficient to power local transport systems, small industries and even replace a share of imported Liquified Petroleum Gas (LPG), thereby contributing to energy self-reliance and reduced carbon emissions. For employment generation, educated rural youths can be trained to operate 100 TPD (tonnes per day) plant, leading to 30–40 direct jobs in operations, logistics and maintenance.
Employment Generation across the Value Chain
The employment opportunities extend across the entire value chain – plant operations, waste supply chain from dairy pockets to plant sites and other associated livelihood options. Scaling dung aggregation alone can create, as per my conservative estimates, around 85,000 part-time rural jobs. Construction and operation of CBG plants at even 30% scale to optimal capacity as mentioned above, could generate nearly 20,000 skilled and semi-skilled jobs across the value chain. In addition, if we consider digestate i.e. the by-product of CBG, there is an added livelihood scope through sales. Digestate can replace chemical fertilizer, implying farm income enhancement besides environmental and soil health improvement.
Solar and Hybrid Microgrids
Complementary to bioenergy, solar mini-grids and microgrids can further expand the access to clean energy. These can support dairy chilling units, rice mills, oil presses, and welding shops in energy-poor rural clusters, besides of energizing nano producers, home based units and micro producers ranging from flour mills to metal works. Research from Mlinda, Jharkhand and DESI Power, Bihar, show that each microgrid cluster can create 50–200 new income-generating activities, including refrigeration services, electric workshops, and women-led enterprises.
So, what do we have in situ? Bihar’s strong network of SHGs offers a ready foundation for such initiatives. If we focus on districts like Muzaffarpur, East Champaran, and Patna hinterlands, with high cattle density and SHG presence, Cluster Level Federations (CLFs) can serve as pilot sites combining CBG plants and solar microgrids. Besides dung other organic wastes can be integrated with supply collection value chain from urban & rural enterprise pockets to the plant sites. Integrating SHGs for waste collection, operation and maintenance (O&M) training, and blended financing can ensure local ownership and job security for youth and women.
PCI India can help create such integrating models, leveraging deep knowledge & experience in clean energy, decentralized renewable energy (DRE), rural livelihoods and SHG training. Supporting states like Uttar Pradesh and Bihar in processing even 20% of their dairy & rural enterprises organic waste can electrify 500 rural clusters with solar microgrids; generate over 100,000 sustainable jobs, provide clean energy and strengthen local production ecosystems.
Turning cow dung and sunlight into energy can thus become Bihar’s, and similar state’s, most inclusive pathway to rural prosperity, energy security, and climate resilience.
The Author is Shantamay Chatterjee, Director – Livelihood with WEE at PCI India, and this is part of his blog series titled “Reimagining Rural Livelihoods: From Subsistence to Sustainability.