The Uttar Pradesh government has inked a deal with a private firm to address the plastic waste issue produced in Ayodhya by transforming it into automotive fuel.
Municipal Commissioner Vishal Singh has envisioned Ayodhya as a city entirely free from single-use plastics. To achieve this goal, the Ayodhya Municipal Corporation has partnered with MK Aromatics Limited, a Bengaluru-based company known for running India's inaugural plastic-to-fuel plant in Chennai.
The recent agreement, formalized by Singh and Imran Rizvi (Zergam), co-promoter and director of MK Aromatics Limited, marks a significant step in Ayodhya's eco-friendly journey.
Rizvi told the Times Of India, "With our patented technology, we deal in conversion of post-consumer waste plastics to synthetic crude oil which serves as value added petroleum hydrocarbon derivatives. We manufacture various aromatic hydrocarbon solvents, aliphatic hydrocarbon solvents, carbon, and its by-products for various industrial usage."
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Ayodhya's plant, set to be the largest in North India, boasts a daily capacity of 20 tonnes, translating to an annual processing capability of 7,300 tonnes. Future plans include doubling the daily capacity.
Government officials associated with the project anticipate its success in Ayodhya will lead to its expansion across urban local bodies, blocks, and large panchayats in the division.
Rizvi reportedly explained, "Our work will involve collection of plastic wastes from 100 points and its segregation at a centre in Ayodhya. The centre will be like a mini refinery where plastic waste will be first converted to crude oil and later into automotive grade diesel which will be sold industries and farmers to be used in generators, tractors, pump sets, heavy machinery, heavy vehicles used in earth work etc on subsidised rates."
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Notably, the project aims to generate employment opportunities for marginalized individuals, particularly women, in the society. Rizvi detailed plans for the installation of 100 collection boxes, exclusively operated by women, and the provision of battery-operated transportation rickshaws for waste collection and transportation to the processing center.
