Officials visit Wadala Johal village, bring farm fires under control

In swift response to a case of stubble fire burning in Wadala Johal village, Additional Deputy Commissioner (General) Jyoti Bala and her team managed to extinguish the flames on the spot.

The team of the ADC including District Agriculture Officer Tajinder Singh and Punjab Pollution Control Board Executive Engineer Sukhdev Singh rushed to the site after spotting the smoke. They promptly called in the fire brigade. The farmers also pitched in with their tractors and brought the fire under control.

Meanwhile, SDM of Baba Bakala Sahib, Amanpreet Singh successfully extinguished another farm fire in his area. Officials across the district have been educating farmers on the importance of stubble management and fire prevention, utilising balers to maintain the fields, said Deputy Commissioner Sakshi Sawhney.

The DC said that the administration is not only taking action against the farmers but also trying to help them by providing the required machinery. She said that teams of the district administration reached the site of farm fires and tried to douse it so as to avoid causing pollution.

Agriculture official Tajinder Singh said that the next few weeks are important as harvesting would reach its peak. He added that presently, only early maturing varieties of paddy are being harvested. The officials advocated the need for continued vigilance against crop residue burning.

PPCB official Sukhdev Singh said that efforts being made this year have already started showing results as the number of farm fire cases has gone down significantly. He said that teams deputed by the administration should continue to motivate farmers and ensure that no burning of crop residue takes place.

Meanwhile, only 30 MT of paddy reached the mandis here on Thursday. The district has witnessed a total arrival of 4,028 MT till this evening.