What Is Taluka?
  • A Taluka is an administrative & geographical block consisting of an average of 80-100 contiguous villages. It has a geographical area of about 1000-1500 sq km & a population of about 2 to 2.5 lac .
  • There are 3,342 Talukas in India & the major activity in them is agricultural. The fixed geographical boundaries of a Taluka can be thought of as a closed biomass & rain water basin. Each Taluka can cover majority of its demand of food, fuel, fodder & fertilizer.
Features:

COST
  • It could yield a total of 200 crore/yr income to Taluka on an investment of 300 crore for plant, machinery, & technology.
  • For setting up of about 3,342 Talukas a massive investment of one cr would be required which is a major attraction for foreign institutional investors & attract major foreign inflow.
Development Strategy
  • Solar Water Evaporation Still - It is a novel way to grow plants on hot & arid wastelands with little rainfall. Solar still uses the heat of solar radiation to free the water bound in the soil & use it for irrigation.
  • Large Scale Dew Collection - It brings cold seawater & then it passes through a heat exchanger where it condenses about 643 cubic meter dew over a period of
    24 hours. This provides as a source of fresh water supply for plants & some animals in costal & inland desert areas.
  • Sorghum Production - The versatile crop is widely used for producing ethanol, sweet syrup & as the forage & silage for animals, all these benefits can be derived from the cultivation on a single piece of land. It has 25 varieties & 2 hybrids. It has one of the highest water use efficiency among crops. The plant is cheap to grow.

    Note - Noorie Lanterns and Elecshaw are also the innovations that could use ethanol for its running.
  • Low Density Biomass Gasifiers - It is a low density biomass gasifiers equipped with Sophisticated Programmable Controller (SPC), it regulates the biomass feeding, ash removal rates, assist the operator during trouble shooting & ensures smooth operations of the system.
  • Solar Detoxification Of Distillery Waste - The dark, obnoxious smelling effluent from distilleries, which is also very high in COD & BOD is treated by solar energy.
Benefits
  • Food & energy self sufficient Talukas can reduce the energy import bill of India.
  • Increase exports.
  • Increase the inflow of foreign institutional funds for development.
  • Can be a new paradigm of sustainable development not only for Indian but the rest of the developing world.
  • The use of Talukas has a potential of creating 30,000 jobs.
REMARKABLE INNOVATION BY JAMANALAL BAJAJ AWARDEE 2001:

SHRI ANIL KUMAR RAJVANSHI
DIRECTOR NIMBKAR AGRICULTURAL RESEARCH INSTITUTE (NARI)
P.O. BOX 44, TAMBAL, PHALTAN-415 523
MAHARASHTRA
INDIA

Website: www.nariphaltan.virtualave.net