Protests Erupt in Telangana Districts Over Health Impact of Ethanol Plants

Hyderabad: Cautioning against ethanol factories being set up in Telangana and Andhra Pradesh, retired senior scientist Dr Babu Rao has raised concerns about the government’s policy with regard to their impact on the environment and farmers in the nearby areas.

Residents of Nirmal district have raised strong objections against the ethanol plant in their surroundings.

Anil Kumar, a resident of Dilawarpur, said that locals have been protesting against the plant for a long time because it was adversely impacting their health.

Murali C. from Chittanur of Narayanpet district said that initially the residents were informed that a rice mill and a jamun fruit garden were coming up. The rice mill turned out to be an ethanol plant.

Murali reported that the factory has been dumping 20 lakh litres of wastewater into a nearby stream, which has killed fish. A young boy who bathed in the contaminated water was hospitalised for four days with severe skin rashes.

The situation worsened when the factory began releasing chemical waste water on to the roads. When residents protested, the authorities responded with a lathicharge on October 21, 2023.

Dr Babu Rao questioned the government’s statement that ethanol production was a solution to farmers’ problems.

“The government claims that ethanol production will solve farmers' issues, but no ethanol company is currently purchasing rice directly from farmers,” he pointed out.

“Instead the government buys rice at subsidised rates, which leaves farmers with limited options to sell their crops,” he added.

Dr Rao said that the data from 2021-22 showed that 10 per cent of ethanol was produced using rice from the Food Corporation of India (FCI) and five per cent was derived from maize or spoiled grains. He said that meeting the target of producing 740 crore litres of ethanol by 2025 would require either 16.43 million tonnes of rice or 19.46 million tonnes of maize annually.

“The government claims farmers earned Rs 40,600 crore through this policy, but without direct crop purchases, it’s not clear how this income was generated,” he added.

Release of harmful gases like formaldehyde, acetaldehyde, and acrolein during the manufacture of ethanol can cause health issues like eye, nose, and throat irritation, headaches, nausea, and breathing difficulties, he said.

Dr Rao said, “Long-term exposure may lead to serious conditions like cancer, asthma, chronic bronchitis, and lung damage. Pregnant women exposed to these pollutants are at risk of delivering babies with low birth weight and poor health.”

The shift to maize for higher ethanol yields also raises questions about land availability and environmental sustainability.

“Increasing maize cultivation to meet ethanol production requires a certain amount of land conversion, which could have serious ecological consequences,” Dr Rao warned.

These concerns point to the need for a thorough review of the ethanol policy, particularly its impact on farmers, the environment, and economic sustainability.