Agro residue utilization by thermal power plants rules, 2023

In what could be one of the effective ways to deal with the issue of air pollution linked to stubble burning, all coal based thermal power plants located in Delhi-NCR and adjoining area will have to mandatorily use a minimum 5% blend of pellets made of crop residue with coal annually. Environment ministry has come out with draft rules in this regard, making a provision of penalty (environmental compensation) for non-compliant power plants from the compliance year 2024-25 onwards. Final rules - called the Agro residue utilization by thermal power plants rules, 2023 - will be notified after two months by incorporating views of stakeholders on the draft, issued on 16/02/2023. The ministry sought experts and others interested in making any objections or suggestions on the proposals to forward their comments within 60 days.