Bengaluru, March 5 : The National Dairy Development Board (NDDB) has partnered with Sustain Plus, a Bengaluru-based NGO, to launch a circular dairy programme aimed at installing 10,000 biogas plants across 15 states, including Karnataka, Uttar Pradesh, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, and Bihar. The initiative focuses on empowering dairy farmers, particularly women, by providing clean cooking fuel and nutrient-rich bio-slurry for soil enrichment, according to Ganesh Neelam, Director, Sustain Plus. The organization has already signed MoUs with 26 milk unions across India to support the program.

The NDDB-Sustain Plus partnership is designed to enhance manure management, promote renewable energy adoption, and improve dairy infrastructure. By integrating biogas plants, solar-powered dairy operations, and efficient milk collection systems, the program aims to lower input costs for farmers, improve soil fertility, and provide clean cooking fuel to rural households. Additionally, it will create new income opportunities through organic fertilizer production and carbon credit generation.

Over the next four years, the initiative will establish 10,000 biogas digesters, generating three lakh tonnes of organic slurry annually, reducing reliance on chemical fertilizers and improving soil health. The digesters will produce over 7 million cubic meters of biogas annually, supplying 10,000 rural households with clean cooking fuel. Furthermore, the program will enable the production of 60,000 tonnes of Phosphate Rich Organic Manure (PROM) each year, providing a sustainable alternative to chemical phosphate fertilizers and promoting affordable, eco-friendly farming practices.