Stressing on the need for increasing the use of renewable energy and decreasing the dependence on fossil fuels, the Union Minister for Science and Technology and Earth Sciences, Dr Harsh Vardhan said the Indian Railways are planning to set up three large plants to process plastic waste into diesel based on the technology patented by scientists of the Indian Institute of Petroleum (IIP). The minister said this during his visit to the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) IIP here on Friday.
Stating that he was happy to see the technology developed at IIP for converting plastic waste into diesel and paraffin, Vardhan who is also the CSIR vice-president said the railways are planning to open three plants based on this technology. Stressing that the use of solar energy would be boosted across India, Vardhan said that the use of simple renewable energy should be increased as part of measures to address climate change.
The dependence on fossil fuels — the bulk of which are imported — also needs to be decreased soon. Stating that the nation is presently under the leadership of a Prime Minister who is eager to facilitate a lot of work for the nation in comparatively lesser time, he also appreciated the vision of former PM Jawaharlal Nehru and former union minister Dr Shyama Prasad Mukherjee for facilitating development of science and technology in India.
The minister said there are many who may have good intentions but take a casual approach to their work. He stressed on the need for changing this casual approach into proactive and dynamic approach. Speaking on the occasion, the IIP director and CSIR director general Dr MO Garg said the institute would work to meet the expectations of Minister for Science and Technology who had exhorted scientists to think out of the box.
The Uttarakhand State Council of Science and Technology (UCOST) director general Rajendra Dobhal also spoke on the occasion. later, Vardhan also inaugurated an Advanced Tribology Research Centre costing an estimated Rs1.5 crore for boosting research on friction and lubricant at the IIP.