Punjab govt to adopt new technology that replaces coal with CNG in brick kilns

Tandrust Punjab Mission director Kahan Singh Pannu said the state has earlier succeeded in shifting most of the active brick kilns to high draught zigzag technology, the approved design which uses lesser coal, according to an Economic Times report.

The new technological advancements in combustion systems have now made it possible to convert even the coal-based brick kilns into CNG-fuelled kilns without a drastic change in their design, Pannu said, according to the ET report.

The state had requested the Punjab State Council of Science and Technology to come up with a technology to replace coal with CNG, Pannu said, adding that Punjab Pollution Control could also contribute to the development, the report stated.

Under the Tandrust Punjab Mission the state government is exploring the possibilities to shift the coal-based brick kilns to CNG.

According to the ET report, the brick kilns in Punjab burn 16 lakh tonnes of coal to bake 1,100 crore bricks annually.

The new zigzag technology has not been able to cut down the air pollution which the state suffers from, apart from other causes.

A large number of coal-based industrial units are shifting to gas, Pannu said, adding that CNG- use will substantially reduce the air pollution load caused by coal-based brick kilns, the report said.