Bio & Solar options essential to meet energy needs: Dr Kalam President inaugurates ONGC Golden Jubilee celebrations
	17:56 IST

In addition to hydrocarbon, bio-diesel and solar energy are the answers to meet the energy requirements of the country. Oil & Natural Gas Corporation Ltd. (ONGC) should undertake a broader agenda of the energy exploration and go in for production in bio-fuel sector also. Dr A. P. J. Abdul Kalam had made these observations while inaugurating the Golden Jubilee Celebrations of ONGC at Dehradun today. Dr Kalam stated that ONGC should meet at least 50 per cent of the annual Oil and Gas needs. However, it might not be possible to meet this requirement fully from conventional oil exploration and extraction alone. He said India has 63 million hectares of waste land out of which 33 million hectares have been allotted for tree plantation. He stated that with little input, Jatropha which produces bio-diesel can be grown well in this wasteland. Bio-diesel plants grown in one million hectares of land can yield a revenue of approximately Rs 2,000 crore a year and provide employment to over one million people. The President also expressed concern over the chances of huge oil spills in Indian Ports and near coasts by hundreds of tankers arriving in India as about 70 per cent of domestic requirements are met from imports. This creates a threat to the environment and needs to be dealt with seriously. Further, he called upon the ONGC to be a pioneer in making India an Energy Independent Country. On this occasion, the Union Minister for Petroleum & Natural Gas & Panchayati Raj Shri Mani Shankar Aiyar recalled the efforts of Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru and Keshav Dev Malviya in making India stand against exploitation by multi national oil companies. Shri Aiyar recalled the stupendous role played by ONGC in taking India from producing a miniscule quantity of oil in 1950s to about 33 million tonnes in all and by ONGC close to 30 million tonnes per year today. It also contributed in raising natural gas production from 9 million standard cubic meters per day (MMSCMD) twenty years ago to about 90 MMSCMD now. He lauded the efforts of oil PSUs in avoiding economic colonialism in early years of post-independence era. ONGC, the leading Navratna PSU was set up on 14, August 1956 as Oil & Natural Gas Commission and the company enters its 50th year today. Earlier, Dr Kalam addressed at the Convocation of 34th Professional Course of Indian Forest Service Probationers at Indira Gandhi National Forest Academy. The President called upon the officers to use technologies in protection of forests. Stressing upon both economic and environmental sustainability, he said a holistic approach is needed to tackle environmental and developmental imperatives. He exhorted the officers to make best use of Information Technology, Biotechnology, Remote Sensing, etc. The Union Minister for Environment & Forests Shri A. Raja reminded the young officers that their duty was not only to manage the forest alone but also to manage the whole eco-system to meet the needs of the people dependent on forests. He advised the officers to strive to harmonize development and conservation. The officers who passed out today included officers from Bhutan as well. Governor of Uttaranchal Shri Sudarshan Agarwal and the Chief Minister Shri Narayan Datt Tiwari also addressed the gathering on both the occasions. S. D. Sharma