18 Aug 2020
Punjab, Haryana submit action plans to check Stubble Burning
The Punjab and Haryana governments have submitted to a Supreme Court-mandated panel their action plans to check stubble burning that contributes significantly to air pollution in Delhi and adjoining areas every year

The Punjab and Haryana governments have submitted to a Supreme Court-mandated panel their action plans to check stubble burning.

Stubble burning contributes extreme levels of air pollution
Image credits: Prabhjot Singh Gill/Outlook

Stubble burning contributes significantly to air pollution in Delhi and adjoining areas every year. It is a major contributor to extreme levels of air pollution. According to the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB), stubble burning contributed significantly last year with the share of farm fire smoke in particulate matter peaking to 44 percent in November.

The states have proposed setting up more custom hiring centres (CHCs) to give farm machinery on rental basis to farmers who cannot afford to purchase the high-end equipment for crop residue management and supplying more balers – a machine used to compress stubble into compact bales.

Proposed to set up a 25-megawatt solar-biomass project: Punjab Govt

The Punjab government has told the Environment Pollution (Prevention and Control) Authority (EPCA) that it has been utilising crop residue through biomass-based power plants and various bio-CNG projects are under process.

The state has also proposed to set up a 25-megawatt solar-biomass project.

“As the existing high price of electricity from biomass plants is unattractive for power utilities and distribution companies, a scheme for combining solar with biomass has been proposed. It will reduce the price of electricity generated,” it told the EPCA.

Mobile app promoted for providing machinery on rent to farmers: Haryana Govt

The Haryana government told EPCA that a committee has been set up to look into the progress of bio-CNG and bio-ethanol projects and biomass plants to manage crop residue.

The state has set up 2,879 CHCs and 2,000 more will be established by October. As many as 791 balers will be supplied by the time harvesting starts.

A mobile application is being promoted for providing machinery on rent to farmers.

The state has already launched “Bhavantar Bharpai Yojana”, a scheme for promoting cultivation of vegetables.

Maximum number of stubble burning incidents take place during winters in Punjab and adjoining states and is one of the main reasons for the alarming spike in pollution in Delhi-NCR. Despite a ban on stubble burning in Punjab and Haryana, farmers continue to defy it because of a lack of financial incentives.

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