Stubble Burning: Punjab Govt appoints nodal, cluster officers to tackle surge in farm fires
Stubble Burning in Punjab: Stubble burning continued unabated in Punjab as the last five days have seen an upward trend in the incidents of farm fires across state. The incidents of stubble burning have shown an upward trend from last few days.
The environmentally harmful practice of stubble burning witnessed highest peak from September 27 to October 2.
Also Read: Stubble Burning: Punjab Govt aims to cut farm fires by 50 pc, proposes action plan to CAQM
In a resolute move to combat stubble-burning, the Punjab Government appointed 776 nodal and cluster officers in different villages to prevent the burning of crop residue. Several cluster officers have also been appointed subdivision-wise in order to spread awareness among farmers in order to tackle the problem of stubble burning.
In a target to eliminate, Punjab Government stated that legal action will be taken against the farmers who will continue to practice farm fires and on the other hand farmers who will cooperate with the administration will be specially honoured.
Moreover, officers and nodal officers will further take strict action against farmers practicing farm fires by striking red line on the revenue cards of the farmers due to which they will not be able to get loans from the banks in future.
Taking all the necessary steps, action plans and layout to achieve significant reduction stubble burning incidents, a large number of awareness campaigns to be organised in several educational institutions and village-level camps will also be organised to keep farmers more informed about pros and cons of stubble burning.
Notably, Punjab's vast paddy area of approximately 32 lakh hectares yields over 22 million tonnes of paddy straw annually, of which 120 lakh tonnes is managed through in-situ and ex-situ methods. The burning of paddy straw in Punjab and Haryana contributes to the significant increase in air pollution levels in Delhi and northern regions during October and November.
Earlier in September 27, the Punjab Government proposed a State action plan and District-wise action plans for tackling the problem of stubble burning to the Commission for Air Quality Management (CAQM) for the current paddy harvesting season.
Keeping in view the sharp increase in cases of stubble burning in Punjab, Punjab Government commits an overall reduction of more than 50 per cent in paddy stubble burning incidents.
Also Read: Stubble Burning: Punjab sees surge in farm fires, reports more than 300 cases in 5 days
Notably, Punjab was severely affected by relentless rainfall and flash floods, resulting in flooded agricultural fields and disruptions to daily life across several areas.
- With inputs from our correspondent
