India, Aug. 10 -- Indian Biogas Association (IBA) on Sunday said it expects a $5 billion reduction in the gas import bill due to the Government's Rs 23,731-crore GOBARdhan Scheme, a circular bioenergy initiative to convert organic waste like agricultural and cow dung into clean energy.

According to an IBA statement, the recently approved GOBARdhan (Galvanising Organic Bio-Agro Resources Dhan) with a financial outlay of Rs 23,731 crore should be viewed as a strategic national investment rather than a public expenditure.

Its returns extend well beyond the bioenergy sector, generating measurable economic, environmental and social dividends through import substitution, rural development and improved agricultural productivity, it stated.

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