NGT team visits villages to seek views of farmers on farm fires

A team led by Dinesh Meena, observer of the National Green Tribunal (NGT), along with other officials visited some villages to collect first-hand information on farm fires and advised the farmers not to burn paddy straw. The farmers were advised to use both in-situ and ex-situ methods to dispose of the paddy straw. Harpal Singh Pannu, Chief Agriculture Officer (CAO) and Jasmit Singh, SDO, Punjab Pollution Control Board (PPCB), were among the officials who accompanied the NGT team.

The team visited the Bharowal, Fatehbad, Jhander Mahanpurkha, Pandori Hassan and other villages. Chief Agriculture Officer (CAO) Harpal Singh Pannu informed the NGT observer that the administration has been organising awareness camps and competitions like slogan-writing contests against paddy straw burning. He also said that efforts have been made to make farmers aware through ASHA workers too. The team visited the farm fire hot spots and spoke to farmers to know their views. The CAO said that farmers have been provided with machinery to manage paddy straw by way of subsidy.