In times of war and global uncertainty, resilience is rarely engineered in boardrooms of multinational giants. More often, it emerges quietly—from places like Belagavi, where necessity sharpens ingenuity and local solutions become lifelines.
Over the past month, as conflict in West Asia disrupted supply chains, a familiar vulnerability resurfaced: dependence on imported LPG. Hotels and small industries in Belagavi found themselves grappling with an acute shortage of commercial cylinders. But instead of grinding to a halt, nearly a third of them pivoted—swiftly and decisively—towards an alternative that had always existed within reach: biomass.
At the centre of this transition is Sameer Kanabargi, an unassuming innovator running Phoenix Industries from Udyambag. For over three decades, his work in alternative energy has largely remained under the radar. Yet, in this moment of crisis, it has become indispensable.
Phoenix Industries has long collaborated with premier institutions like IITs, IISc, and TERI, translating research into practical, deployable solutions. Its range of biomass-based stoves, water heaters, gasifiers, and steam generators is designed with remarkable adaptability—capable of serving a household or scaling up to cater to gatherings of two lakh people.
What makes this technology particularly relevant today is its simplicity and accessibility. The fuel is not imported, priced in dollars, or held hostage to geopolitics. It lies scattered across farms and backyards—bagasse, dry leaves, coconut shells, twigs, agricultural residue, even paper waste. Any inflammable biomass becomes usable energy, without requiring modifications to the equipment.
The economics are equally compelling. Biomass, costing ₹5–7 per kilogram in urban areas and often free in rural settings, delivers heat energy at nearly half the cost of LPG. With three kilograms of biomass equating to one kilogram of LPG in energy output, businesses are not just surviving—they are saving. Many have recovered their investment in under three months.
The numbers reflect this shift. Around 150 of Belagavi’s 350 hotels and nearly 100 small and medium industries across the region have adopted biomass systems. Some are first-time users, while others—who had once abandoned it for the convenience of LPG—are now returning with renewed appreciation. Demand has surged so dramatically that Phoenix Industries is operating in three shifts, with inquiries in the past ten days matching those of an entire decade.
But this is not a story that began with a crisis. It is the culmination of decades of grassroots innovation. Kanabargi was among the earliest adopters of the smokeless ‘ASTRA Ole’ chulha developed by IISc, producing over 20,000 units for rural households. He worked closely with IIT Bombay on biomass gasifier feasibility and scaled up TERI-designed stoves for wider use.
His contributions have extended even to national security—designing biomass-based solutions for the Indian Army and BSF, including a portable heater powered by pine needles for personnel stationed in sub-zero conditions. Notably, he transferred this technology free of cost.
This instinct to “think differently,” as he describes it, traces back to his school days, when a ninth-standard project—a multi-purpose stove that cooked food while heating water—won him a state award. The prototype still sits in his office, a quiet reminder of how early curiosity can evolve into impactful innovation.
Even in business, his trajectory diverged from convention. Taking over a family-run factory, he steered it away from routine manufacturing towards problem-solving—developing tools like sheep-shearing kits and labour-saving charkhas commissioned by development organisations.
For local businesses, the return to biomass is not ideological—it is practical. Ajay Pai, President of the Belgaum Hotel Owners Association, recalls using biomass systems between 2006 and 2014 before switching to LPG for convenience. Today, the equation has reversed. Using coconut waste, firewood, and agricultural residue, hotels are now cooking, generating steam for idlis, heating milk, and even producing hot water—efficiently and sustainably.
What this moment underscores is a larger truth: small-town innovation is not a fallback—it is a strategic asset. In an era where global supply chains can fracture overnight, decentralised, locally sourced solutions offer not just resilience, but autonomy.
Belagavi’s response to the LPG crisis is a case study in adaptive thinking. It demonstrates that the answers to global disruptions do not always lie in scaling up—but in looking around. In fields, in workshops, in ideas nurtured quietly over decades.
And when the world feels uncertain, it is often these grounded innovations that keep the wheels turning.