The Commission for Air Quality Management (CAQM) on Monday said farm fire incidents during this year’s paddy harvesting season, officially recorded from 15th September to 30th November, have witnessed a significant decline in the last five years, particularly in Punjab and Haryana.
The agency attributed the declining numbers to stricter state-wide monitoring and enforcement measures.
According to government data, Punjab recorded 5,114 fires this season, registering a drop of 93 per cent from 2021 count’s which stood at a towering figure of 71,304 in 2021. A similar decline was noted in Haryana, which logged 662 fires, the lowest in five years, in contrast to 6,987 stubble burning incidents reported from the state in 2021.
CAQM officials attributed the reduced farm fire events to stricter implementation of the State and District-specific Action Plans, boosting the in-situ and ex-situ stubble management measures.
Expanding on ex-situ paddy straw management, the agency said the measures now include biomass-based power generation, use of straw in industrial boilers, production of bio-ethanol, and mandatory co-firing of paddy straw pellets or briquettes in thermal power plants and brick kilns. It added that paddy straw is also being used in packaging and other commercial applications.
The agency also noted ground-level inspection and enforcement by flying squads, Parali Protection Force, field officers and continuous monitoring across hotspot Districts, among other measures, reducing the stubble burning numbers.
Meanwhile, fire counts in neighbouring states rose. Rajasthan recorded 2,890 fires this season, up from 2,772 last year. Uttar Pradesh logged 7,290 fires, compared to 6,142 last season. Madhya Pradesh saw the sharpest rise, with 17,067 fires this year versus 16,360 last year.