New Delhi: Anant Ambani, the man behind the wildlife rescue and conservation initiative in Jamnagar, called Vantara, has found himself a new passion farming.
Compressed bio gas (CBG) plants is being planned by Reliance Industries in Andhra Pradesh, where more than 3 lakh jobs could be created and in the next few decades bring nearly Rs 60,000 crore of revenue to the state, Ambani said on Friday. He is an executive director of the Reliance.
He also attended the foundation stone laying ceremony of the Rayalaseema Horticulture Hub and Indian School of Agriculture at Madanapalle.
Farms as a source of energy
The CBG plan is the linkage between agriculture and energy. Ambani said the investment could connect agriculture which provides food to the nation with its energy. Farm wastes are used as fuel and farmers can have an additional income.
More prosperous farmers, cleaner energy and stronger animal care, he said in a few words. The final of these is the easiest to identify as a connection to Vantara.
A school aimed at young people
Indian School of Agriculture aims to motivate people towards farming. The school will be leveraging Reliance’s Jio Krishi initiative to integrate AI, drone, robotics and cloud technology into farming. This includes virtual classrooms for farmers, and tools for their increase in income.
Ambani presented four-point plan to the school. The first is, as he puts it, that it should be put at farmers’ doorsteps. The concept is to merge formal agricultural education and digital access together, without the need for any travel to the school, for rural communities to benefit from the expertise.
Ambani stated that Reliance will invest strategically in the institution, provide digital enhancements, technical heads and industry collaborations. The government of Andhra Pradesh is also collaborating with Reliance for the establishment and running of the school.
Political backing
The move was welcomed by state leaders. During the event, Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu declared Ambani as ‘Andhra’s beloved son’. Ambani, on the other hand requested Naidu to treat him as a son of Andhra and promised to help build the state.
In the larger project there are two funding sources. It anticipates an investment by government of Rs 40,352 crore and investments of about Rs 60,000 crore by the private sector.
What to watch
These numbers are high, but revenue and job estimates are for decades. The key questions to consider are: What is the growth rate of the plants and how many farmers actually adopt the tools and training?
However, the announcement also comes in a series. Reliance has been building out its clean energy capacity, including solar projects in Andhra Pradesh and Gujarat. Rural India is now getting that impetus from biogas and agriculture.
It is a move which demonstrates Anant Ambani’s expansion of interests beyond animal welfare to rural development. The project’s delivery will decide whether or not farming will be a career for the young Indians.
