Three Indian projects in race for green energy awards

London, June 1 (UNI) Three Indian projects have been shortlisted for the Ashden Awards for Sustainable Energy -- which rewards outstanding initiatives that use sustainable technologies to meet the needs of local communities and at the same time address the urgent challenge of climate change. In total, 11 projects from across Asia, Africa and Latin America have been selected to compete for a share of over 200,000 pounds of prize money.

The three projects from India include Appropriate Rural Technology Institute (ARTI) in Maharashtra for designing a revolutionary bio-gas system that uses food waste and other sugary, starchy substances rather than dung to produce gas for cooking. It only needs to be 'fed' 1 kg per day to produce 500 litres of gas. The digestion process is much quicker - taking place within 48 hours instead of the 40 days required when using dung. The system is also cheap and simple to install and, unlike traditional bio-gas plants that are large and require readily available livestock waste, it can be used in urban areas. Indeed, one of its many benefits is that it helps clear city streets of rotting food.

The other Indian project is International Development Enterprises India (IDEI) for promoting a device that allows farmers on the plains of India to grow crops all through the year rather than wait for the monsoon. Over the last 10 years IDEI has helped create a largely self-financing network of manufacturers, retailers and installers which has seen over half a million pumps sold and installed.

Most farmers who have bought the pump have seen their annual income double; for some, it has increased five-fold. Many farmers find they can now stay on their land all year round and do not have to seek work in the cities. The treadle pump has transformed the lives of some of India's rural poor at a cost (including the well) of less than 20 pounds.

The Vivekananda Kendra - NARDEP (VK-Nardep) in Tamil Nadu has also been chosen for the award for making a series of advances in bio-gas design. This technology, which turns livestock waste into gas for cooking and uses the residue as fertiliser, is well-proven.

VK-NARDEP has made a series of developments including an affordable bio-gas plant made largely from bamboo. The distinctive feature of this latest scheme is the use of the slurry as fertiliser. Usually slurry is simply spread onto the fields, but VK-NARDEP combines it with a range of other natural ingredients to form a powerful organic mixture. It is so effective that some users are abandoning artificial fertilisers altogether and giving a major boost to the prospects for organic farming across the region.

All finalists will be in London next month for the last stage of the judging process. The awards will be presented at a ceremony at the Royal Geographical Society, London SW7 on June 15, 2006.

Guest speakers will be Tory leader David Cameron MP, and Lord May, former Chief Scientific Advisor to the UK government and former Head of the UK Office of Science and Technology. Mark Lynas, broadcaster, writer and author will host the event.

Patron of the Ashden Awards for Sustainable Energy, HRH The Prince of Wales will address the awards ceremony via a video message.

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