Speakers at an interaction-cum-strategic planning meeting on increasing ethanol production from maize observed that making ethanol from maize would hold key in advancing pan-India rollout of blending 20% bio-ethanol (E20) in petrol by 2025-26.
The meeting noted that maize production was increasing at 4% annual growth rate (AGR) in the country had touched 33.6 million tonnes from about 10 million hectares area. The meeting organised by ICAR-Indian Institute of Maize Research (Ludhiana) was held on the campus of ICAR-Indian Institute of Rice Research here.
Keeping in mind the rising prices of crude oil, the Government of India had launched Ethanol Blended Petrol (EBP) programme in 2003. At present, about 10% (E10) of the blending target was met from sugarcane and broken rice, the speakers said adding that the success in the ethanol blending programme had prompted the Centre to advance the deadline for pan-India E20 rollout to 2025-26 from 2030.
It was estimated that the country would need about 14 billion litres of bio-ethanol by 20225-26 and 50% of it was expected to be met from maize. There would be a requirement of an additional 17 million tonnes of maize grain for production of about 7 billion litres of ethanol, the speakers said. The ICAR-IIMR Ludhiana along with its collaborators was entrusted with the task to discuss and plan the roadmap for meeting the additional demand of maize for fulfilling the E20 target.
The meet felt that there was an urgent need to increase the area of rain-fed maize cultivation and productivity to at least 5 tonnes per hectare. Expansion of maize area in the rabi fallows, need for intensification of maize-based cropping systems, development of climate-resilient high-starch maize, minimising yield gap through agronomical interventions, creating maize catchment area near distilleries and refining technologies for distilling maize for reduced cost of production were some of the recommendations of the meeting for meeting the E20 target.
The meeting was chaired by Additional Director-General of ICAR (Food and Fodder Crops) S.K. Pradhan and co-chaired by Director of ICAR-IIM Ludhiana H.S. Jat. It was attended by Global Maize Director of International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center B.M. Prasanna (online), Global Director of ICRISAT-Resilient Farm and Food Systems M.L. Jat scientists from CIMMYT, BISA, IIMR, Directorate of Poultry Research, PJTSAU and representatives of the private seed, poultry and distilleries industries.
