Hazy sunshine, burning fields, air quality plummets in Punjab
Hazy sunshine throughout the day and burnt particles of straw falling from the sky has become a post-harvesting phenomenon.
What else had become another norm of the day are farm fires along the national highway.
“I wasted 10 days in mandis. Now, I am left with just a few days to prepare fields. Thus, there’s no other option then setting stubble on fire,” said Jaskaran Singh (name changed) of Mehmadpur village.
This season, a total of 6,611 farm fires were reported in the state and 2,479 incidents (38 per cent) recorded in the past week alone.
On Sunday, the state witnessed 345 farm fires, with Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann’s home district topping with 116 cases, followed by Mansa (44 cases).
The state had recorded 83,002 farm fires in 2020, 71,304 in 2021, 49,922 in 2022 and 36,663 in 2023.
A senior official said, “The next 10 days are crucial. There will be more farm fires as the window between sowing wheat and preparing the fields narrows.”
“This year, we have been largely successful in keeping farm fires down. The numbers may swell in the next 10 days, given late harvesting. There is hazy sunshine, trees and plants look dusty. With no rain in sight, the situation is getting from bad to worse with none of the cities recording good or moderate air quality,” said a senior government official.
On Sunday, Amritsar recorded air quality index (AQI) of 234, Jalandhar 200, Ludhiana 218, Patiala 206, Mandi Gobindgarh 290 and Bathinda 176.
The AQI of 0-50 is considered good, 51-100 satisfactory, 101-200 moderate, 201-300 poor, 301-400 very poor and 401-500 severe.
