Dhanbad | September 2026

An initiative involving IIT (ISM) Dhanbad and its incubated startup Sansar Green Mission Private Limited has drawn media attention for its approach to turning dry leaves into a useful resource for soil health.

The proposed initiative aims to scientifically process dry leaves generated on the IIT (ISM) Dhanbad campus and convert them into nutrient-rich organic manure enriched with beneficial microorganisms. The broader objective is to connect environmental conservation, sustainable waste management, organic farming and soil health through a practical “Waste to Wealth” model.

IIT (ISM) Dhanbad & Sansar Green: From Dry Leaves to Soil Wealth

Large campuses and public spaces generate significant quantities of fallen leaves. When leaves are burned, they contribute to air pollution; when they are simply discarded, potentially useful organic matter is lost.

The proposed project seeks to address both issues by bringing the material back into the biological cycle.

Under the initiative, dry leaves collected from the IIT (ISM) campus are planned to undergo scientific decomposition. The resulting organic material would then be enriched with appropriate nutrients and beneficial microorganisms to create value-added organic manure.

The proposed process can be summarised as:

Dry Leaves → Scientific Decomposition → Nutrient & Microbial Enrichment → Organic Manure → Improved Soil Health

This approach moves beyond simply disposing of green waste and instead looks at it as a potential resource for soil and plant health.

Rajeev Singh and Sansar Green’s Focus on Soil Health

Rajeev Singh, Director of Sansar Green Mission Private Limited, participated in the strategic discussion on the project along with Prof. Alok Kumar Das of IIT (ISM) Dhanbad, District Agriculture Officer Anjana and IIT (ISM) Assistant Registrar Mritunjay Sharma.

For Sansar Green, the initiative also connects with its wider work around organic agriculture, microbial technologies and soil health.

The relationship between Sansar Green and IIT (ISM) Dhanbad extends beyond the dry-leaf initiative. In August 2025, IIT (ISM) officially announced a strategic collaboration between CIIE, IIT (ISM) Dhanbad Foundation and Sansar Green for AI-powered organic farming solutions. That collaboration included soil-health analysis and region-specific biofertiliser production using microbial strains.

The dry-leaf initiative therefore represents another potential application of the broader idea of combining scientific research with practical, field-oriented sustainability solutions.

Sansar Green to Invest in Production and Operations

An important feature of the proposed model is the division of responsibilities between the institution and the startup.

According to published reports, Sansar Green would bear the costs associated with machinery, equipment, manpower, production and other operational requirements. IIT (ISM) Dhanbad would provide the necessary space for production and storage of the finished organic manure.

This creates a collaborative framework combining institutional infrastructure with startup-led investment and implementation.

Beneficial Microorganisms at the Centre of the Approach

Organic matter is only one part of healthy soil. Biological activity also plays an important role in nutrient cycling and maintaining a functioning soil ecosystem.

The proposed process therefore envisages enriching scientifically decomposed leaf material with beneficial microorganisms and nutrients rather than treating the project solely as conventional leaf composting.

The intended result is an organic input that can support applications such as gardening, nursery production, plantation, landscaping, organic cultivation and soil restoration.

Benefits Beyond the IIT (ISM) Dhanbad Campus

The finished manure is intended for applications within the IIT (ISM) Dhanbad campus, including gardens, nurseries, plantations and landscaping. Published reports also state that there are plans to make it available to farmers, gardeners, nursery operators and the wider public.

This gives the initiative a potential impact beyond campus waste management.

If the model proves practical and scalable, similar approaches could be considered by universities, government institutions, industrial campuses, housing societies and urban local bodies that generate significant quantities of biodegradable green waste. This broader replication potential was also highlighted in the reported comments of Prof. Alok Kumar Das.

IIT (ISM) Dhanbad, Sansar Green and the Waste-to-Wealth Approach

At its core, the initiative connects four areas:

Waste to Wealth | Soil Health | Microbial Technology | Circular Economy

Instead of viewing fallen leaves as material that needs to be removed, the approach considers whether their organic value can be recovered and returned to the soil.

For Rajeev Singh and Sansar Green, this aligns with a broader focus on developing practical agricultural and environmental solutions through science, microorganisms and technology.

For IIT (ISM) Dhanbad, the initiative also demonstrates how an institutional campus can potentially serve as a setting for developing and demonstrating sustainable solutions.

From Waste Back to the Soil

The larger significance of the initiative lies in a simple shift in perspective: a dry leaf does not necessarily have to become waste.

Through scientific decomposition, nutrient enrichment and beneficial microorganisms, it can potentially re-enter the biological cycle as a useful soil resource.

If successfully implemented, the IIT (ISM) Dhanbad–Sansar Green model could demonstrate how institutional green waste can be managed closer to its source while simultaneously creating a useful input for soil and plant health.

It is a practical expression of the circular-economy principle:

Waste becomes a resource.
Organic matter returns to the soil.
Beneficial microorganisms support biological processes.
And the cycle begins again.

The post Media Coverage: IIT (ISM) Dhanbad & Sansar Green Join Hands to Turn Dry Leaves into Soil Wealth appeared first on Sansar Green .

For Rajeev Singh, Founder & Director of Sansar Green Mission Private Limited, sustainable agriculture begins with understanding the soil and recognising the value of natural resources that are often treated as waste.

This philosophy is reflected in a proposed initiative involving IIT (ISM) Dhanbad and its incubated startup, Sansar Green Mission Private Limited, to transform dry leaves generated within the IIT (ISM) campus into nutrient- and beneficial microorganism-enriched organic manure.

The initiative brings together green-waste management, soil health, microbial science and circular-economy principles to develop a practical “Waste to Wealth” model.

IIT (ISM) Dhanbad & Sansar Green: From Dry Leaves to Soil Wealth

Large institutional campuses generate significant quantities of dry leaves throughout the year. Instead of viewing these leaves simply as a waste-management challenge, IIT (ISM) Dhanbad and Sansar Green are exploring their productive reuse for improving soil health.

Under the proposed initiative, dry leaves collected from the IIT (ISM) Dhanbad campus will undergo a scientific decomposition process.

The resulting organic material is planned to be enriched with essential nutrients and beneficial microorganisms to develop high-quality organic manure.

The process can be represented as:

Dry Leaves → Scientific Decomposition → Nutrient & Microbial Enrichment → Organic Manure → Improved Soil Health

The objective is not merely composting. The approach seeks to convert locally generated biological waste into a value-added soil resource.

Rajeev Singh’s Focus on Soil Health and Microbial Science

Rajeev Singh brings around two decades of practical experience in landscaping, plantation and plant-related activities to Sansar Green’s approach.

His broader vision focuses on an important principle: long-term plant health depends significantly on the condition of the soil and root zone.

Organic matter, soil structure, moisture, nutrients and beneficial microbial activity are interconnected. By combining decomposed organic material with appropriate nutrients and beneficial microorganisms, the initiative seeks to develop a more comprehensive approach to soil health.

Rather than looking at dry leaves as the end of a plant’s biological cycle, the concept is to return their organic value to the soil.

IIT (ISM) Dhanbad Hosts Discussion on the Proposed Initiative

The proposed initiative was discussed by Prof. Alok Kumar Das, Dean, CIIE, IIT (ISM) Dhanbad; Rajeev Singh, Founder & Director, Sansar Green Mission Private Limited; Mrs. Anjana, District Agriculture Officer, Dhanbad; and Mr. Mritunjay Sharma, Assistant Registrar, IIT (ISM) Dhanbad.

The discussion focused on developing a practical framework for processing dry leaves and creating enriched organic manure that can contribute to green-waste management and soil-health improvement.

IIT (ISM) Dhanbad and Sansar Green: A Collaborative Implementation Model

Under the proposed arrangement, Sansar Green Mission Private Limited will undertake the investment required for machinery, equipment, manpower, production and operational activities.

IIT (ISM) Dhanbad will provide the necessary space for establishing the proposed production unit and storing the finished organic manure.

This model combines institutional infrastructure with startup-led investment and implementation, creating an opportunity to demonstrate a practical sustainability solution within a major educational campus.

From the IIT (ISM) Campus to Farmers and the Wider Community

The finished organic manure is planned for use in gardens, nurseries, plantations, landscaping and other green activities within the IIT (ISM) Dhanbad campus.

The initiative also envisages making the manure available to farmers, nursery operators, gardening enthusiasts and the wider community.

This could extend the impact of the initiative beyond campus waste management and demonstrate how locally available biomass can be transformed into a useful resource for soil and plant health.

IIT (ISM) Dhanbad Initiative Supports the “Waste to Wealth” Approach

The concept brings together three closely connected priorities:

Waste to Wealth | Soil Health | Circular Economy

Instead of burning, dumping or treating dry leaves merely as waste, the proposed system seeks to bring their organic matter back into the biological cycle.

Such decentralised processing could also help reduce the need to transport green waste over long distances while creating a useful product close to the point where the waste is generated.

A Model That Could Extend Beyond IIT (ISM) Dhanbad

If successfully implemented, the initiative could provide useful learning for other locations that generate substantial quantities of biodegradable green waste.

Similar approaches could potentially be explored in:

Educational institutions
Government campuses
Industrial and corporate campuses
Residential townships
Large gardens and parks
Urban local bodies

Each location would require an appropriate system based on the quantity and characteristics of available biomass, local soil conditions and intended end use.

Rajeev Singh and Sansar Green’s Larger Vision

For Rajeev Singh and the Sansar Green team, the initiative represents more than producing organic manure from dry leaves.

The broader objective is to demonstrate how soil science, beneficial microorganisms, organic resources and practical technology can work together to address real environmental and agricultural challenges.

It reflects a simple but important idea:

A dry leaf does not necessarily represent the end of a biological cycle. With appropriate scientific intervention, its nutrients and organic matter can return to the soil and contribute to new plant life.

Through its proposed collaboration with IIT (ISM) Dhanbad, Sansar Green aims to demonstrate how locally available biological waste can be transformed into a productive resource for healthier soil and a greener future.

From Waste to Wealth, and Back to the Soil

The future of sustainability does not always depend on discovering new resources. It can also begin with recognising the value of resources already available around us.

By connecting green-waste management with microbial science and soil health, the IIT (ISM) Dhanbad and Sansar Green initiative seeks to demonstrate a circular approach:

Waste becomes a resource.
Organic matter returns to the soil.
Microbial activity supports the biological cycle.
And healthier soil supports new plant life.

That is the larger vision behind turning dry leaves into soil wealth.

The post Rajeev Singh & IIT (ISM) Dhanbad: Turning Green Waste into Soil Wealth through Science and Microbial Technology appeared first on Sansar Green .