Sangrur, Patiala districts buck the trend

As the window period — November 1 to November 15 — of wheat sowing nears, the farm fire incidents in Malwa are increasing.

The major reason for farm fires is that the paddy crop matures around the last week of October or the first week of November, leaving little or no time for crop residue management. As per data, the Malwa region contributes over 80 per cent of farm fires in the state. With Diwali round the corner, the situation is going to become worse. In the past, farmers set paddy residue on fire as a mark of protest against the state authorities for allegedly going soft on those burning crackers.

Punjab Pollution Control Board Chairman Adarshpal Vig said the department had issued special instructions to keep a check on pollution caused by crackers and stubble burning.

However, the silver lining is stubble burning incidents in Sangrur and Patiala have dropped. The data suggests that Sangrur had witnessed a drop in residue burning incidents as compared to previous years. As many as 182 incidents of stubble burning were reported till October 27, whereas 338 and 463 incidents were recorded during the corresponding period in 2023 and 2022, respectively.

Patiala has also witnessed a decline in farm fires. While 250 episodes of residue burning were witnessed till October 27, 505 and 785 incidents were reported during the corresponding period last year. Patiala witnessed a 44 per cent decline in farm fires as compared to last year.