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In one-of-a-kind initiative to address the problem of recurring forest fires and climate change, a 1.5-tonne-per-day indigenous biochar plant has been commissioned on the campus of Dr YS Parmar University of Horticulture and Forestry at Neri in Hamirpur district. Developed to process highly combustible chir pine needles and other forest biomass, the facility is being hailed as India’s first indigenously designed biochar plant, specifically meant for forest biomass. Officials believe it can become a scalable model for sustainable forest management, particularly in Himalayan states that face the forest fire crisis every year. The project has been developed through a collaboration between the state Forest Department, IIT-Roorkee, the horticulture university and ProClime.