Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu inaugurated the socio-economic initiatives of the Chinta Sasidhar Foundation, the philanthropic arm of the Vishwa Samudra Group, on the Nandha Gokulam campus, at Edagali village of Venkatachalam mandal in Nellore district on Friday.
The Chief Minister launched the Vishwa Samudra Bio-Ethanol Plant, which supplements the farmers’ income by buying the damaged/ broken rice.
Lauding it as a farmer-friendly green initiative, Mr. Naidu said, “Built in 24 acres, the grain-based ethenol plant has a captive power generation capacity of 200 kilolitre per day. It intends to supply to oil marketing companies under the Government of India’s Ethanol Blending Programme (EBP).”
Speaking to The Hindu, Vishwa Samudra Group Chairman Chinta Sasidhar said, “We have invested ₹450 crore on the socio-economic initiatives at Nandha Gokulam, apart from the purchase of land. The project cost of the bio-ethanol plant alone is ₹340 crore. The facility will generate direct employment to 250 people and indirect employment to more than 300 people.”
“The bio-refinery processes the agricultural feedstock into ethanol, supporting farmer incomes and India’s ethanol blending goals. The plant will procure approximately 15,000 tonnes of broken rice per month from over 300 rice mills located in a 250-km radius, ensuring strong local linkages and steady income for regional farmers. Ethanol production has picked up drastically in the last couple of years,” he added.
The Chief Minister also inaugurated the Nandha Gokulam Life School and Nandha Gokulam Save The Bull Cause on the campus.
Nellore MP Vemireddy Prabhakar Reddy, Sarvepalli MLA Somireddy Chandramohan Reddy, senior officials, and political leaders attended the programme.
