Manipur youth revolutionizing charcoal production without cutting a single tree

Climate change has become so evident that the responsibility of every individual is accountable. Amid such a situation, a science graduate teacher from Manipur, Marchis Moirangthem produces charcoal without destroying a single tree. 

The impact of climate change reaches every nook and corner of the world. To prevent the disastrous impact of environmental degradation, it is important to think about climate change issues globally and act locally. Being a nature lover and sense of responsibility to prevent this mother earth from further deterioration due to human greed, Marchis Moirangthem has taken up a small yet valuable initiative.

A school teacher by profession for the last 10 years, Marchis Moirangthem from Ningthoukhong which is around 35 km from Imphal under the Bishnupur district had innovated an idea of making eco-friendly charcoal from rice husk, waste paper or cardboard and wheat flour. 

His new endeavour had a humble beginning from the past three months. However, with the growing demand from the public, it has become a challenging task for Marchis to meet the demand. Nevertheless, he is putting all effort with his limited resources and manpower to fulfil the demand of the public.

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Sharing his thoughts on how his new venture was started, Marchis told to India Today NE that massive deforestation in the state has deteriorated the environment to a great extent. With the concern and strong desire to save Mother Earth from climate change impact caused by anthropogenic factors, the idea of making eco-friendly charcoal has come up in his mind.

“Manipur is a land where one can enjoy pleasant weather conditions. But as the impact of climate change reaches every corner of the world, Manipur has lost its perfect weather conditions has been gradual. Being a nature lover, I keep on thinking that in what way I can contribute to saving this mother earth,” Marchis expressed. 

Marchis started his new venture with limited resources since the day the idea clicked in his mind. His financial condition is not and this has become a major challenging factor. But what is most impressive is that he continues crafting eco-friendly charcoal using all possible ways and means. 

“I encounter a lot of challenges and difficulties in doing this new venture due to a shortage of money. As such I couldn’t produce my product on a large scale. I hope I can produce this eco-friendly charcoal in a good amount had adequate money invested. So far, I haven’t hired any staff as I am not in a position to provide their salary or wages. Therefore, with the help of my family members and some friends I managed to run this new venture with great effort and hurdles,” he said.

Making this deforestation-free charcoal seems to be time-consuming and needs lot of hard work. But to stop deforestation for the purpose of making charcoal, Marchis try to make his eco-friendly charcoal at a low cost by selling it at rate of Rs 50 per Kg. 

While explaining the process of making eco-friendly charcoal, he said that most of the step involve in making eco-friendly charcoal is handiwork. The first step of making this environment-friendly charcoal is to carbonised the rice husk for at least eight hours. The carbonisation is done by heating rice husk indirectly using bitumen drum as a furnace. The heat produce from drum will transfer to rice husk and be carbonated by keeping it fro at least eight hours. 

He further said that Carbonised rice husk has to be cool down by sprinkling water. This will be followed by grinding the carbonised rice husk into powder. The grind carbonised rice husk will mix with waste paper which is already soaked in plain water for 24 hours. This mixture will add wheat flour as a binding agent. d After this, the fully mixed item will be compressed in a compressor. This compressed mixture will dry in sun for two to three days. To reduce the drying up period, solar reflector developed by himself is being used. 
One person is capable to make 20 kg of charcoal in a day. So, if manpower is increase, large amount of charcoal can be produced, he added. 

He also pointed out that normal process of directly burning down the rice husk can produce lot of harmful gases such as nitrogen oxide, silicon dioxide, sulphur dioxide. But the process of indirectly heating the rice husk using furnace releases least amount of hazardous gases. 

Stating about equipment he used, he said that compressor in making charcoal is designed by himself but it was set up by welder who happens to be his friends. They are Jyoti Basu and Thoiba.

Being a school teacher by profession, Marchis is finding difficulties in time management. But the constant support from his younger brother, he can successfully continue his venture. 

In a plea for support, Marches earnestly requests Government intervention, recognizing it as a pivotal factor in elevating production. He underscores the urgency of this appeal, emphasizing the broader objective: "I seek investment to enhance production capacity and replace the prevailing trend of wood-based charcoal production with the sustainable approach of utilizing paper waste and rice husk."

His venture not only contributes positively to the local community but also sets a compelling example for a greener and more sustainable future. The Manipur Government's endorsement and support for Marches Moirangthem's environmentally conscious enterprise would not only validate his efforts but also contribute significantly to broader initiatives aimed at preserving our planet for future generations.