The Centre is also expected to share that it had shot off a strong missive to the state governments seeking detailed action taken reports on the six districts. Both Punjab and Haryana are learnt to be going slow on the same.
Pulled up last week by the apex court for failing to arrest air pollution in Delhi NCR, the Centre is likely to inform in its response that Punjab has recorded 119 farm fires between September 15 to 29, lesser than the 133 of 2023 but still worryingly high.
Poll-bound Haryana has had 80 farm fires in 2024 in the same period against the 49 of 2023.
In Punjab, Amritsar district, as seen in 2023, leads the pack with 71 stubble fire counts as on September 29, 2024 against nine each in Tarn Taran and Kapurthala.
In Haryana, it is Karnal district with 31 fire counts followed by Kurukshetra at 17 and Faridabad at 8 — all figures higher than 2023.ENFORCEMENT GAPS
A look at the enforcement data so far, likely to be shared with the court, helps show up the gap areas more clearly — from imposition of environmental compensation (EC) to FIRs and red entry in land records of stubble burners, to bringing in strong deterrence measures. A ‘red entry’ can bar the farmers from a range of governmental benefits.
For instance, 98 fire counts were reported as on September 28, 2024 in Punjab and the state government machinery inspected 91 fields for the same. However, cumulative environmental compensation was imposed only in 42 cases.
Of the Rs 1,25,000 EC imposed, only ?95,000 was realised. In terms of stricter action, FIRs were filed in five cases or disobedience to orders promulgated by public servants while ‘red entries’ in records were entered only in 30 cases.
In Haryana, not a single ‘red entry’ has been recorded while four FIRs have been filed. While the state has ensured 100% realisation of the Rs 1,12,500 EC imposed, it imposed EC only in 45 of the 80 fields inspected on counts of fire incidents.
The Commission of Air Quality Management (CAQM) has also reminded the two states of its ten-point direction number 80 dated 12.04.2024, to ensure ‘complete elimination of paddy stubble burning during 2024’.
MEETINGS & REVIEWS
The Centre is also likely to inform the court that alarmed at the early spurt in farm fires in Punjab and Haryana, despite commitments in their 2024 action plans to eliminate stubble burning, the CAQM wrote to the state chief secretaries on September 25, 2024.
An emergency meeting was held on September 26, 2024 with the two state governments and Deputy Commissioners of the six districts to ensure additional action to stop stubble burning and the need to make ground level officers accountable for any violation.
The Commission is learnt to have sought an action taken report besides a special report on Amritsar and Karnal districts which have reported high fire counts. With the two states delaying response, a reminder was issued again on September 28, 2024.
