Khadi India on Tuesday launched Prakritik emulsion paint which has cow dung as its main ingredient. Khadi India has priced the distemper paint at Rs 120 per litre and emulsion paint at Rs 225 per litre. The paint was launched in Delhi by union minister for road transport & highways & MSME Nitin Gadkari.

Khadi India said cow dung makes for 20-30 percent of the paint’s ingredients and as a result, the paint is a "first-of-its-kind" product, is anti-fungal, non-toxic, anti-bacterial, cost-effective and odourless, and has been certified by Bureau of Indian Standards.

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Union minister for fisheries, animal husbandry and dairy Giriraj Singh; minister of state for MSME Pratap Chandra Sarangi and chairman KVIC Vinai Kumar Saxena were also present at the occasion.

"We don’t want to compromise on quality. We want to maintain industry standards. We will advertise Khadi India’s products in a professional manner to increase the reach of the product. This paint has been tested at several laboratories of the country and at half the price of paints of other companies, this paint has great potential for demand," Gadkari said at the event.

The paint has been tested at National Test House, Mumbai, Shri Ram Institute for Industrial Research, New Delhi, and National Test House, Ghaziabad.

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"We will approach urban development ministry with this paint’s proposal after 2-3 months of trial. Our prices are 50 percent cheaper than other options. We need to work on marketing and advertising," Gadkari added.

The research into a paint made from cow dung started in 2018 and the paint is now ready for sale.

"The research into this paint started in 2018. We tried different combinations with cow dung and we have finally arrived at this certified product which is ready for sale. This paint will instantly reduce the temperature of a room if the outer environment is hot and will maintain the temperature if it is cold outside. It has even successfully tested for radiation prevention," Jaipur-based scientist Dr Mohammed Esa Khan said.

Khadi Prakritik Emulsion paint meets BIS 15489:2013 standards; whereas Khadi Prakritik Distemper paint meets BIS 428:2013 standards.

The paint has successfully passed various test parameters such as application of paint, thinning properties, drying time and finish, among others. It dries in less than 4 hours, and has a smooth and uniform finish.

The paint can be applied on interior as well as exterior walls. Both distemper and emulsion paints are available in white base colour, and it can be developed in any color by suitably mixing colorants, Khadi India said.

(Edited by : Jomy)