Page 11 - Stubble Burning

Stubble burning cases in Haryana not even 10% of Punjab's: Khattar

'Last year there were 2,561 incidents of stubble burning, whereas it has decreased to 1,925 this year while 13,873 incidents have taken place in Punjab this year'

Oct AQI review: With 7 days in 'very poor' category, 2022 worse than 2021

The air quality in the national capital was in the 'very poor' category for 7 days as against zero last year. The AQI was in the 'poor' category for 10 days as against seven in 2021

Punjab records 2,131 incidents of farm fires, highest so far this season

In a major spike in stubble burning incidents, Punjab on Monday reported 2,131 farm fires, the highest so far this season, with Sangrur accounting for 330. With the fresh incidents of stubble burning, the cumulative farm fire cases between September 15 and October 31 reached 16,004, according to Punjab Remote Sensing Centre data. During the same period in 2020 and 2021, the state had recorded 29,615 and 13,124 stubble burning incidents, respectively. Of the total 2,131 stubble burning incidents on Monday, Sangrur witnessed the highest number of cases at 330, followed by 250 in Ferozepur, 202 in Patiala, 178 in Bathinda, 174 in Tarn Taran, 126 in Barnala, 123 in Mansa and 112 in Jalandhar. Despite a massive awareness exercise by the state government to dissuade farmers from setting crop residue on fire, the growers continue to burn paddy straw to clear their fields for sowing the next crop -- wheat and vegetables. Punjab Chief Secretary Vijay Kumar Janjua took stock of the incident

Delhi's air quality on brink of turning 'severe', stubble burning share 22%

A layer of eye-stinging smog lingered over Delhi on Monday as its air quality neared the 'severe' zone with stubble burning accounting for 22 per cent of the city's PM2.5 pollution. Delhi's 24-hour average air quality index (AQI) stood at 392 (very poor), worsening from 352 on Sunday. It was 354 on Thursday, 271 on Wednesday, 302 on Tuesday and 312 on Monday (Diwali). An AQI between zero and 50 is considered "good", 51 and 100 "satisfactory", 101 and 200 "moderate", 201 and 300 "poor", 301 and 400 "very poor", and 401 and 500 "severe". Low wind speed allowed pollutants to accumulate in the air and the situation might deteriorate to "severe" on Tuesday morning, said Mahesh Palawat, vice president (meteorology and climate change), Skymet Weather. He said humidity may increase and the wind speed may reduce further from November 4 under the influence of a strong Western Disturbance leading to another episode of smog. According to SAFAR, a forecasting agency under the Union Ministry of

Punjab CM decides to personally review efforts to check stubble burning

Amid farm fire incidents continuing in Punjab, Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann on Sunday said he has decided to personally undertake review of the efforts in all the districts to check paddy straw burning. He also said that the state government had chalked out a plan to combat the stubble burning menace and directed the officers concerned to implement it in a result oriented manner. As part of the plan, the state government has recently distributed 30,000 machines for in-situ management of paddy straw thereby taking the total number of such machines to 1.20 lakh, said Mann in an official release here. He also urged people to play a pivotal role in checking environmental pollution in the state. "Now the time has come when every citizen should support the state government in making the state clean, green and pollution free, he said, adding that the state government would leave no stone unturned for this noble cause. The chief minister said the campaign has been initiated across the sta

Punjab govt suspends four agriculture officers for dereliction of duty

The Punjab government on Sunday suspended four officials of the Agriculture Department in the wake of stubble burning incidents in their areas, according to an official release. The development came as the share of stubble burning in Delhi's PM2.5 pollution rose to 26 per cent, the highest this year, with forecasters saying that slow wind speed and an increase in stubble burning, especially in Punjab, may make it worse. Following directions of Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann, Agriculture Minister Kuldeep Singh Dhaliwal placed four agriculture officers under suspension with immediate effect for dereliction of duty, the release stated. The suspended officials are Chief Agriculture Officer (Sangrur) Harbans Singh, Agriculture Officer (Samana in Patiala) Satish Kumar, Agriculture Officer (Chohla Sahib in Tarn Taran) Harpal Singh and Agriculture Officer (Patti in Tarn Taran) Bhupinder Singh, it said. Sangrur, Patiala and Tarn Taran, among various other districts, have been witnessing farm

Stubble burning share in Delhi's pollution rises to 26% as farm fires rise

The share of stubble burning in Delhi PM2.5 pollution rose to 26 per cent on Sunday, the highest this year so far, amid an increase in farm fires and favourable conditions for transport of emissions to Delhi-NCR. On Saturday, farm fires accounted for 21 per cent of the PM2.5 pollution in the national capital. PM2.5 are fine particles that are 2.5 microns or less in diameter and can travel deep into the respiratory tract, reaching the lungs and entering the bloodstream. The contribution of stubble burning to Delhi's PM2.5 pollution remained low (up to 7 per cent) till Friday due to a prolonged rain spell in early October and slow transport-level winds which were not strong enough to carry smoke from farm fires to the national capital. On Diwali (October 24), stubble burning contributed five to eight per cent to the total PM2.5 pollution in Delhi. The share of farm fires in Delhi's PM2.5 pollution was 25 per cent on Diwali in 2021, 32 per cent in 2020 and 19 per cent in 2019. The I

Delhi air 'very poor'; farm fire smoke, slow wind may push it to 'severe'

Delhi recorded its air quality in the 'very poor' category on Sunday morning and forecasters said slow wind speed and an increase in stubble burning, especially in Punjab, may push it to the 'severe' zone. With pollution levels worsening, the Centre's air quality panel on Saturday directed authorities to impose a ban on construction and demolition activities in Delhi-NCR, except in essential projects, and other curbs under stage III of the Graded Response Action Plan. Delhi's overall air quality index (AQI) stood at 367 at 9 am. The 24-hour average AQI on Saturday was 397, the worst since January. It was 354 on Thursday, 271 on Wednesday, 302 on Tuesday and 312 on Monday (Diwali). Anand Vihar (AQI 468) was the most polluted place in the capital. Wazirpur (412), Vivek Vihar (423) and Jahangirpuri (407) were among the monitoring stations that recorded "severe" air quality. V K Soni, head of the India Meteorological Department's Environment Monitoring and Research Centre, said a layer

Punjab sees nearly 1,900 farm fires on Saturday despite awareness programme

Despite the Punjab government carrying out a massive awareness programme to dissuade farmers from setting crop residue on fire, the state recorded 1,898 stubble burning incidents on Saturday. With this, the cumulative number of farm fire incidents between September 15 and October 29 now stands at 12,112, according to Ludhiana-based Punjab Remote Sensing Centre data. During the corresponding in 2020 and 2021, the state had reported 23,187 and 8,856 stubble burning incidents respectively. Out of total 1,898 farm fire incidents on Saturday, Sangrur recorded the highest number of 286 cases, followed by 268 in Patiala, 192 in Tarn Taran, 109 in Barnala, 108 in Bathinda, 105 in Ludhiana and 104 in Ferozepur, as per the data. The state had reported 1,541 and 1,353 active fire incidents on October 29 in 2020 and 2021 respectively, according to the data. After Diwali, the state has seen a jump in the number of stubble burning incidents. The state's total number of farm fires has more than

150 farmers honoured for not burning crop residue in Punjab, says speaker

Punjab Vidhan Sabha Speaker Kultar Singh Sandhwan on Saturday exhorted farmers not to burn stubble so as to keep the environment clean and pollution free. He was addressing a gathering here in an event in which 150 progressive farmers from across the state were honoured for not setting the crop residue on fire for the last five years, according to an official release here. Sandhwan said crop residue burning causes damage to other microorganisms present in the upper layer of the soil as well as its organic quality. Speaking on this occasion, Environment Minister Gurmeet Singh Meet Hayer said it is a matter of happiness that farmers are giving up stubble burning practice. Due to pollution, not only the lungs are damaged, many other type of health diseases affect the human being, he stated. Hayer appealed to progressive farmers to spread the message of not burning crop residue in villages. The minister also expressed happiness that the young generation is now participating in planta

LIVE: Pact to set up Tata-Airbus proj in Guj inked under MVA rule, says min

From national and international political developments to rising air pollution and farm fires, catch all the latest news from across the globe here

Punjab reports 9% rise in stubble burning incidents from last year: CAQM

Punjab reported 1,111 stubble burning incidents on Thursday

9% YoY rise in Punjab farm fires during Sept 15-Oct 26 period: CAQM

There has been a "significant" nine per cent rise in stubble burning incidents in Punjab between September 15 and October 26 this year in comparison to the corresponding period in 2021 which is a "matter of concern", the Commission for Air Quality Management said on Thursday. It said the total number of farm fires in Haryana has, however, reduced by 26 per cent as compared to last year in the same period. In view of the spike in stubble incidents, the commission has taken up the matter with the Punjab government for effective implementation of action plan, including strategies for stubble management, the CAQM said. "As per the standard protocol developed by ISRO for CAQM, between September 15 to October 26, total paddy residue burning events reported in Punjab are 7,036 compared to 6,463 for the same period during the last year, which is a significant increase of about nine per cent,' the commission said in a statement. It said about 70 per cent of farm fires during the current pad

18 UP districts fail to meet expectations in curbing stubble burning

Despite warnings of strict action by Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, nearly 18 districts in the state have failed in checking stubble burning

Why was this Diwali in Delhi the cleanest in years?

In Delhi and NCR, cracker ban went up into smoke this Diwali. But, the air quality around this time was cleanest in the last seven years. So what changed this time? Let's find out

Haryana govt considering announcing MSP on stubble to check its burning

As a measure to check air pollution, the Haryana government is considering announcing a minimum support price (MSP) on stubble so that farmers sell their crop residue instead of burning it, Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar said on Wednesday. He said the number of stubble burning cases has come down substantially in Haryana. The state government gives Rs 1,000 per acre to farmers for not burning the crop residue, Khattar said, adding that it also helps them sell the crop residue to refineries and other industries. Asserting that his government is "very serious" about the issue of stubble burning, Khattar said, "We have succeeded in putting a check on stubble burning with cooperation from farmers by providing financial help to them and making them aware of its harmful effects." "To take it further, we are considering announcing an MSP on stubble and exploring the possibility of buying it from farmers and giving it to industries for their use," the chief minister told a press ...

Delhi AQI poor despite cracker ban; BJP says stubble burning responsible

Days after Diwali, Delhi was wrapped in a blanket of smog as the air quality remained in the "very poor" category as the overall AQI stood at 323

60% of stubble burning cases in Punjab from Tarn Taran, Amritsar, Gurdaspur

Punjab recorded nearly 3,700 stubble burning incidents between September 15 and October 22 and about 60 per cent of these were in three districts of Majha region -- Tarn Taran, Amritsar and Gurdaspur. According to data from the Ludhiana-based Punjab Remote Sensing Centre, Tarn Taran reported 1,034 stubble burning incidents, maximum in the state, followed by Amritsar 895 and Gurdaspur 324. The state overall witnessed 3,696 cases of stubble burning during the period. Paddy straw burning in Punjab and Haryana is one of the reasons behind the alarming spike in air pollution levels in the national capital region in October and November. And, the situation is often aggravated by bursting of firecrackers around Diwali. Paddy harvest is complete in 35 per cent of the total cultivated area in Punjab and it will pick up in a day or two, said an official of the state agriculture department. Crop harvesting got delayed by at least 10 days because of untimely rain in September. Punjab has aroun

Stubble burning has risen over the years in Punjab, dropped in Haryana

Cumulatively, between September 15 and October 22, cases of paddy burning have dipped by 32% in Punjab, by almost 41 per cent in Haryana, and by 64% in UP

Delhi records 'poor' air quality for 8th consecutive day; may turn 'severe'

Delhi's air quality was recorded in the "poor" category for the eighth consecutive day on Sunday and could turn "severe" on Diwali due to emissions from firecrackers and an increase in the share of smoke from stubble burning because of a favourable wind speed and direction. The capital's Air Quality Index (AQI) stood at 243 at 10 am. It was 265 at 4 pm on Saturday. Only one (Anand Vihar) of the 35 monitoring stations in the city recorded the air quality in the "very poor" category. An AQI between zero and 50 is considered "good", 51 and 100 "satisfactory", 101 and 200 "moderate", 201 and 300 "poor", 301 and 400 "very poor", and 401 and 500 "severe". SAFAR, a forecasting agency under the Union Ministry of Earth Sciences, said the air quality may deteriorate to "very poor" levels even if no firecrackers are burst. In case firecrackers are burst like last year, the air quality may plunge to "severe" levels on the night of Diwali itself and continue to remain in the "red" zone for ano