As informed by Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) the revised “Guidelines for Environmental Management of Dairy Farms and Gaushalas” were issued in July, 2021 covering environmental issues; methods for disposal/utilisation of dung; solid waste management; wastewater management; air quality management; siting policy for the Dairy farms and Gaushalas located in Urban, Peri-Urban and Rural areas.

 

As per the guidelines, following methods are being adopted for promoting sustainable utilization of cattle waste; (i) Composting/Vermi-composting; (ii) Bio-gas/Compressed biogas (CBG) production (iii) Manufacture of dung wood or dung cake to be used as fuel.

 

In order to complement and supplement the efforts of the States and Union Territories to support dairy farmers for eco-friendly waste management solutions the Government of India has taken following initiatives and implementing following major schemes:

(i) Under the Animal Waste to Wealth Management component of Animal Husbandry Infrastructure Development Fund (AHIDF) being implemented by the Department of Animal Husbandry and Dairying, 3% interest subvention is provided to eligible entities for establishment of Animal Waste Management units like production of PROM, Bio CNG and infrastructure development for cow dung/cow urine processing units.

(ii) Galvanizing Organic Bio-Agro Resources Dhan (GOBARdhan): GOBARdhan is an umbrella initiative of Government of India based on the whole of Government approach. It covers the entire gamut of schemes/programmes/policies promoting the conversion of organic waste like cattle dung/ agri-residue etc. to biogas/ CBG/ Bio CNG.

 

(iii) Sustainable Alternative Towards Affordable Transportation (SATAT) initiative: The initiative was launched in 2018 by the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas (MoPNG) in line with the National Policy on Biofuels, 2018, which promotes the increased use of biofuels including Compressed Bio-Gas (CBG).

 

(iv) MNRE’s Biogas Programme: The Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE), Government of India, is implementing the Biogas Programme as part of its National Bioenergy Programme (2021–26), with the aim of promoting clean and sustainable energy solutions at the grassroots.

 

The Department of Animal Husbandry and Dairying through National Dairy Development Board (NDDB) is promoting eco-friendly practices in the dairy sector by actively collaborating with the Central/ State Governments, dairy cooperatives, and various institutional stakeholders. NDDB has developed and is supporting successful models for scientific manure management:  (i) Zakariyapura Model featuring integrated household-level biogas units; (ii) Varanasi Model is a centralized large-scale biogas production for captive use in a dairy plant and (iii) Banas Model is a centralized large-scale plant focused on converting biogas into compressed biogas or CBG.

All these models emphasize an end-to-end manure value chain, including the conversion of bio-slurry into organic manure or fertilizer. They collectively demonstrate the economic and environmental viability of transforming cattle dung into renewable energy and organic inputs, and are currently being replicated across multiple states in collaboration with State dairy cooperatives.

To institutionalize and scale these efforts, NDDB has signed Memorandum of Understanding (MoUs) with 25 dairy cooperatives across 15 states, outlining joint commitments for implementing sustainable manure management initiatives. NDDB has also launched a dedicated financing scheme to support the rollout of these models. The scheme provides financial assistance for setting up biogas/CBG plants and slurry processing infrastructure, while also promoting long-term sustainability by linking project viability with carbon credit monetization, thereby enabling participating cooperatives and farmers to earn performance-based incentives.

This information was given by Union Minister of State, Ministry of Fisheries, Animal Husbandry and Dairying, Prof. S.P. Singh Baghel, in a written reply in Rajya Sabha on 30^th July, 2025.

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(Release ID: 2150212)