The Menace of Stubble Burning: Why Punjab is the bigger culprit than Haryana

It’s that time of the year in Delhi. Smog has engulfed the Capital and the air is toxic. The problems are plenty and one of the big contributors to the deteriorating air quality is stubble burning. According to SAFAR (System of Air Quality and Weather Forecasting And Research), a forecasting agency under the Ministry of Earth Sciences, farm fires contributed 34 per cent to the region’s PM 2.5 pollution.

On Friday, Noida, which is part of the National Capital Region, recorded an Air Quality Index (AQI) of 562 and Gurguram’s AQI was 539, SAFAR data revealed. AQI between 400 to 500 or above is considered severe and is expected to remain so until 5 November. It is unlikely that the situation will improve. The Centre’s Air Quality Early Warning System for Delhi predicts that quality will remain in the very poor category (300 to 400) until 9 November.

Also read: Breathless in Delhi: Why do farmers burn stubble and can it be stopped?

Blaming Punjab

Stubble burning continues to add to the Capital’s woes. Farmers in Punjab and Haryana harvest paddy crops in October and then sow wheat from November until mid-December. In the short time between harvesting and sowing, they burn stubble – the left-over straw – to clear off the paddy residue. The smoke from these fires chokes Delhi and its surrounding areas.

It’s a problem that has escalated in the last decade or so, according to writer and economist Sanjeev Sanyal. And Punjab farmers are to be blamed.

Citing the Economic Survey, he writes in a Twitter thread that farmers in the state have shifted their crop cycle by three weeks. About 15 years ago, the farmers sowed Kharif crops by mid-June, harvesting them by mid-October after which the land was prepared for sowing Rabi crops by early November. But now the change in patterns allows them only a week to clear land and hence they resort to burning.

Delhi AQI is running at 500-800 range. In fact, one can actually smell the ash particles in the air. The burning of crop residue is the single biggest source. So why did farmers in Punjab started doing this? It was not such a widespread practice till recently 1/n pic.twitter.com/2ftFGU9OiU

— Sanjeev Sanyal (@sanjeevsanyal) November 3, 2022

The Centre also has slammed Punjab for farm fires. Hitting out at the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) government for rising pollution, Union Environment Minister Bhupender Yadav said that “there is no doubt over who has turned Delhi into a gas chamber”.

On 2 November, he tweeted, “Punjab, a state run by the AAP government, has seen an over 19% rise in farm fires over 2021. Haryana has seen a 30.6% drop.”

Sample this: As of today, Punjab, a state run by the AAP government, has seen an over 19% rise in farm fires over 2021. Haryana has seen a 30.6% drop.

Just today, Punjab saw 3,634 fires.

There is no doubt over who has turned Delhi into a gas chamber.

Wondering how? Read on... pic.twitter.com/Nh8fYN9gnf

— Bhupender Yadav (@byadavbjp) November 2, 2022

What the data says

Farm fire cases in Punjab between 15 September and 1 November 2022 rose by over 18 per cent, compared to the same period in 2021. Harayana saw a drop of close to 31 per cent, according to findings by the Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) which monitored paddy residue using satellite monitoring, reports Business Standard. With almost 18,000 burning incidents, Punjab recorded over eight times as many events as Haryana did during this period in 2022.

Until 3 November, Haryana recorded 2,377 stubble-burning cases this year. That is lower than the 3,438 recorded until 3 November 2021.

A report released by the Institute reveals that Punjab and Haryana have witnessed the highest number of paddy residue burning cases between 25 October to 3 November 2022.

Punjab witnessed 181 cases of stubble burning on 25 October and since then there has only been an upward trend. On 3 November, the state recorded 2,666 cases, an increase of 13.73 per cent.

Compare that with Haryana, which saw only 12 cases of stubble burning on 25 October and 128 on 3 November. While there has been an increase over the days, the rise is by 9.66 per cent.

Also read: Choked: Why Delhi’s air pollution problem isn’t just a winter issue

Haryana’s success story

The progress has been slow but steady for Haryana. In the past six years, the state has seen over 55 per cent drop in stubble burning cases. And it does not want to stop at that. The aim is to stop the practice completely

Farmers in Haryana have the same problem of getting rid of paddy residue as their counterparts in Punjab. But the state government has put its weight behind campaigns that educate farmers on the ill effects of stubble burning. It has also promoted machines that help in tackling crop waste, according to a report in Business Standard. The government provides machinery with 80 per cent subsidy for stubble burning to hiring centres.

According to the report, the machines were used in at least 351 villages in October and November, where farm fires were reported last year. A district-level control centre reports active fires which officers douse immediately.

Farmers are given cash rewards and provided incentives to not burn stubble. Many are using super seeders and happy seeder machines which allow them to sow wheat without worrying about paddy residue, reports The Indian Express.

In Haryana’s Karnal, farmers use balers, a machine used to compress crop residue into compact bales. These machines are given to them free of cost by private contractors, the newspaper reports.

Why can’t Punjab do the same?

The Aam Aadmi Party government in Punjab is indulging in a blame game with the Centre. Arvind Kejriwal said that the Punjab government had prepared a plan to give a cash incentive of Rs 2,500 per acre to farmers so that they are not forced to burn stubble.

“The Centre rejected the proposal. They said they won’t do anything for the farmers because of their protests against the three farm laws. The central government’s hatred for farmers is the reason behind the smoke (from farm fires) all around,” Kejriwal claimed.

A farmer from Punjab’s Sangur, which reported the highest cases of stubble burning this season, agreed that it is harmful. He told The Print, “But we don’t have an option. We don’t have any resources. The government only talks but doesn’t help.”

With inputs from agencies

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