Sustainability Case
Study
Impactus 25
Pellet-in-a-Pail – The 4-Step
System
2. Sealed Pail +
1. Pelletising at Source
Clip-In Stove
3. Closed-Loop Delivery4. Circular Reuse
• Mini-pelletiser set up
at sugar mill
• Pellets filled into 10L • Milk trucks bring
sealed pails
fresh pails to village
• Empty pails go back to
the mill with bagasse
• 200 kg/h output using
bagasse + corn-cob
• Pail clips into fanassisted stove — no
scooping
• Ensures continuous fuelfeed without wastage
• Blending ensures
consistent burn, stable • Flame and cooking feel
density
remain familiar
• No new transport
needed — just leverage
milk route
• Delivery cost =
₹0.90/pail-km
• Fuel cycle closes
without disruption
Why Villagers Say “Yes”
Familiar Feel
No change in how people
cook
Taste Based
Trust
Affordable
Access
No change in how people
cook
No change in how people
cook
₹10 PAY-GO top-up is
cheaper than buying 3
sticks of firewood
Traditional chulha
shell remains — only
pail system is new
Tasty Smoke-Off
roadshows: Women cook
with both fuels and
taste the difference
Voting is done by
taste, not technical
health talks
Clip-in pail gives the
illusion of “real
firewood cooking”
Encourages community
ownership through word
of mouth
No need for bank
accounts or subsidies
Same flame, same sound,
same posture — No
behavioral shift needed
Flexible daily top-ups
remove large upfront
costs
Built-In
Routine
Blends into existing
village habits
Fuel pails handed out
by dairy's “Fuel
Captain” during morning
milk pour
Familiar faces + shared
community space =
instant comfort
Integrates into
existing village
rituals effortlessly
Negative
Positive
SWOT analysis
Internal factors
External factors
Strengths
Opportunities
• Familiar cooking style retained (no
behavior change)
• Rising awareness of clean fuel and
carbon offsets
• Uses trusted milk truck network for
distribution
• Scope to partner with SHGs, dairy
unions, and panchayats
• Modular pellet hubs = low setup
cost, easy to scale
• Carbon credit revenue can fund loyalty
programs
Weaknesses
Threats
• Feedstock supply may vary seasonally • Competing briquette models might
undercut pricing
• Initial cost of stove setup may slow
uptake
• Dependence on dairy unions for
logistics efficiency
• Potential delays in community adoption
due to local inertia
• Government LPG subsidy programs could
regain focus
Strategy to Address Key Market Expansion
Challenges: Pellet-in-a-Pail
Barriers & Considerations
Key Initiatives & Target Areas
Metrics & Expected Outcomes
Distributi
Affordabili
on
ty &
Behavioral
&
Accessibili Acceptance
Operationa
ty
l Reach
• Habitual use of firewood/dung • Run "Tasty Smoke-Off"
campaigns for side-by-side
• Skepticism about new fuels
cooking comparisons
• Low awareness of health impact
• Retain traditional chulha
structure for comfort
• Daily wage economy
• Upfront stove cost
• Unbanked users
• Last-mile delivery gaps
• Seasonal feedstock supply
• Leverage village influencers
• Offer
PAY-GO refills with no
and SHGs
minimum quantity
• Enable shared stove use in
joint families
• Faster household adoption
• Increased word-of-mouth trust
• Reduction in open burning
• Higher repeat usage rate
• Reduced initial resistance to
stove adoption
• Stable refill demand
• Use commission-based SHG
to milk
manage
pail for
• agents
Use dairy
trucks
circulation
closed-loop pail delivery
• Improved logistics cost efficiency
• Set up village-level pellet
• Hub-level scalability across villages
• Rural transport constraints storage via SHGs
• Blend corn-cob waste to
stabilize seasonal supply
• Consistent fuel availability
Vision:
A future where no family breathes
smoke to cook and every village turns
its waste into energy.
Mission:
To enable rural communities to
transform local crop residues into
clean cooking fuel through a trusted,
closed-loop delivery model that
empowers women, improves health, and
protects the environment.
Strate
gic
Anchor
s:
slide
7
Community-led distribution
through SHGs and milk unions.
PAY-GO affordability model to
suit daily wage households.
Seamless adoption through zero
behavior-change design.
Alignment with SDGs: 3 (Health),
7 (Clean Energy), 11 (Sustainable
Communities), 13 (Climate Action)
Ideas for Digital Layering:
Slide
7
Smart Pail Tags (QR or NFC): For
tracking usage, ownership, and refills.
Mobile PAY-GO Interface: SHG “Fuel
Captains” use a simple app to log
refills and manage payment credit.
Carbon Credit Ledger: Smart tagging
allows easy measurement and verification
for carbon offset platforms.
Feedback Loop: Rural households can give
voice/text feedback during milk pour
timings — recorded via app.
Impact Area
Highlights
Status
Health
70% PM₂.₅ reduction in kitchens; better
lung health for women & children
🟢 Positive
Climate
Offsets 2,400+ tons of CO₂/year per hub
🟢 Positive
Employment
10–14 rural jobs created per hub; SHGs
gain income via distribution
🟢 Growing
Community Ownership
"Fuel Captain" model boosts trust and
participation
🟢 Positive
Resilience
Seasonal challenges managed via
feedstock blending and pail stock
planning
🟢 Medium Risk
Carbon Credit Potential
Credits help subsidize or offer free
fuel during festivals/initial rollouts
🟢 Unlockable
Over 80% of rural households still cook using
firewood, cow dung, or coal in poorly
ventilated spaces.
According to WHO, this contributes to 300,000–
400,000 premature deaths annually due to indoor
air pollution — primarily affecting women and
children.
Simultaneously, India generates 350+ million
tonnes of agricultural waste per year — much of
it is burned in the open, causing CO₂
emissions, soil damage, and respiratory issues.
In sugarcane-heavy states like Telangana,
bagasse residue remains largely unutilized,
while rural energy needs go unmet.
Converting this waste into cleanburning pellet fuel addresses both
problems.
The Pellet-in-a-Pail model is a
community-based innovation that:
Keeps the cooking experience
unchanged
Delivers fuel through existing rural
infrastructure
Reduces pollution, improves health,
and generates income
Soluti
on
Framin
g
Converting this waste into cleanburning pellet fuel addresses both
problems.
The Pellet-in-a-Pail model is a
community-based innovation that:
Keeps the cooking experience unchanged
Delivers fuel through existing rural
infrastructure
Reduces pollution, improves health, and
generates income