Latest central reviews in hotspot districts in the two states, which contribute heavily to air pollution due to rampant stubble burning, showed that the bulk of districts under watch have so far completed less than 30% paddy harvest. Alarmed at the early spike in farm fires, a special meeting was called by the Centre on October 14 on safeguarding and enforcement measures.
ET gathers that at the meet, Punjab and Haryana government officials were told that with harvest yet to pick up, fully stringent enforcement measures need to be taken on time to prevent more stubble fires.
Among the hotspot districts in Punjab, only Amritsar has completed 45% paddy harvest as on October 14. The other hotspot districts – Tarn Taran, Kapurthala, Firozpur and Sangrur – have reported not more than 18%, 16%, 10% and 9% harvest, respectively.
Similarly, except Karnal district in Haryana which has completed about 40% harvest, Kaithal, Kurukshetra and Fatehabad are only at 30%, 20% and 10% harvest status.
Meanwhile, stubble burning rate so far, though lesser than previous years, but is still not offering much solace.Assessments for September 15-October 20 show a total of 1,445 cases of farm fires in Punjab against 1,618 in 2023. Haryana’s numbers are on the higher side as compared to 2023. A total of 653 cases of farm fires have been reported in the state until October 19 against 621 in 2023.
