Guwahati: A cycle rally and tree plantation drive in the city, combined with painting, quiz and essay competitions at Cotton Collegiate School, marked World Biofuel Day celebrations here on Friday.

World Biofuel Day is observed across India on August 10 to create awareness on the importance of non-fossil fuels as an alternative to conventional fossil fuels and to highlight the various efforts made by the government in the biofuel sector.

The cycle rally was organised from near the IOCL marketing office while the tree plantation drive was held on the Indian Oil Bhawan premises at Noonmati in the morning.

In the afternoon, Indian Oil Corporation Ltd (AOD office) chief general manager Uttiya Bhattacharyya and civil supplies minister Phani Bhusan Choudhury presented awards to the winners of the painting, quiz and essay writing competitions during a function organised at Cotton Collegiate school here.

Bhattacharyya highlighted the necessity of alternative fuels and steps taken by the Centre for biofuel production during the event.

"This is a day dedicated to the future. We are finding it difficult to move away from non-renewable energy sources. It is a good sign that use of ethanol and biodiesel is increasing. Domestic crude oil production is only able to meet 17.9 per cent of the demand. The rest is imported, resulting in a huge import bill. We are producing biodiesel from jatropha, waste potato, non-edible oilseeds, used cooking oil and even municipal waste," he said.

The National Policy on Biofuels, notified on June 8 this year, envisages a target of 20 per cent blending of ethanol in petrol and 5 per cent blending of biodiesel in diesel by 2030, according to Bhattacharyya.