Sangrur/Patiala: A farmer from Gobindpura village in Punjab’s Sangrur district, his eyes watering from the smoke spreading around him and the paddy stubble burning in his feet, is in no mood to listen to a lecture.
“Study burning is very harmful, we know it,” he said, moments after lighting the fire. “But we have no choice. We don’t have any resources. The government just talks but doesn’t help. He declined to give his name before walking into the hazy distance.
Sangrur has recorded this on the basis of satellite images highest incidence There is a case of stubble burning in Punjab this season, but it is hardly the only case.
As one enters Punjab from Haryana on the national highway, the scene on either side of the road resembles a pastoral apocalypse – black fields, flames, smoky skies – in Sangrur district, the home constituency of Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann. long before he came.
Between 15 September to 1 November, Punjab Lodged According to satellite data of ICAR-Indian Agricultural Research Institute, 17,846 incidents of residue burning. This is an increase of 18.5 per cent over the same period last year.
Compared to Punjab, other states that have recorded “active fire incidents due to burning of rice residue” this season are mild – while Haryana, Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh have 2,083 incidents, 777, 345 and 2,083 respectively. was 972.
Punjab alone recorded a total of 1,842 rice residue burning incidents on Tuesday, with over 2,000 burning in two of the last five days. Within the state, two of the worst offenders are Sangrur and Patiala districts.
There has been an increase of 137 percent in the incidents of fire in the fields in Sangrur as compared to the same period last year, while there has been an increase of 70 percent in Patiala.
So, what gives? When ThePrint visited the two districts, it was clear that farmers, through various awareness campaigns, are aware of the ill effects of stubble burning, including pollution. However, this is not a sufficient incentive to induce behavior change, he says, noting that alternative methods of disposing of stubble are more expensive.
Meanwhile, agriculture department officials at the grassroots claim that the rules are almost impossible to enforce and have become scapegoats due to lack of political will and inaction of higher officials.
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‘How can we not try to save money?’
Since 6 o’clock in the morning, his hands and feet were blackened by soot, Gurmeet Singh, a farmer of Sangrur, dreams of going to Canada one day. They believe that they have a masters degree, which can improve their prospects.
However, when it comes to clearing the paddy fields and preparing them for the next round of sowing, modern alternatives do not work for that. Biggest reason? cost.
“If we start investing in machinery to avoid burning, all our investments will go into that,” he said, adding that labor and diesel prices are also prohibitive. “Anyway, we are barely making any profit. We have to sit for the protest to save ourselves from the government. ,
Gurminder Singh, a farmer from Patiala, feels that stubble burning can stop only when everyone is provided with seeders – machines that can uproot the stubble and sow seeds in the cleared land.
“Farmers are the first to be affected by the pollution caused by stubble burning but we are already running into losses, how can we not try to save money? If we all get super seeder then no one will burn stubble.
However, some officials of the Agriculture Department claim that the seeders have been subsidized for farmers and there has been some acceleration. The government also provides super seeders to the farmers in turn in different districts.
“We have given machinery worth Rs 15-20 crore along with subsidy to farmers this season. This includes Super Seeder, Happy Seeder, among others,” said Dr Amarjeet Singh, official of the Agriculture Department, Sangrur.
He insisted that the situation in the district was not as bad as was being reported. “If seen in terms of percentage of cultivable land, Sangrur does not have the highest number of incidents of stubble burning. Sangrur has 2,91,000 hectares of cultivable land.
Dr Harinder Singh, Chief Agriculture Officer, Patiala admits that price is the main constraint.
“If one uses alternative methods of eliminating stubble, the cost to the farmer increases by about Rs 3,000 per acre,” he said.
However, according to him, it is expected that by the end of the season, Patiala’s performance will be better than last year. “We still expect 50 per cent reduction in stubble burning incidents in Patiala as compared to last year. More than 80 per cent harvesting has been done.
Amarjeet said another possible alternative to stubble burning is bio-decomposition, a process that converts crop residues into manure within two to three weeks. But for many farmers it is a very long gap before sowing the next crop.
Then there is the option of cutting the stubble and making knots out of them. But while this method has some costs other than transportation, industries using these bales, such as biothermal power plants or bio-oil producers, are not found everywhere.
However, he admitted that apart from spreading awareness among farmers, officials like him cannot do much in terms of ensuring compliance.
Harinder Singh of Patiala agreed. “The problem is that we cannot take any punitive action and thus it becomes difficult for us to control such incidents,” he said.
‘Government wants change, but no action against farmers’
between blame game Between the Punjab government and the central government, the officials of the Agriculture Department claim that they have fallen down because of not taking any action against the farmers.
In view of the incidents of stubble burning, the Punjab Government has taken strict action against the officials of the Agriculture Department. Suspended Several Sundays for alleged dereliction of duty, including Sangrur’s Chief Agriculture Officer Harbans Singh.
Other officials who spoke to ThePrint said they believed it was unfair, and blamed “politics” and stubborn farmer unions for the situation.
“Our job is to spread awareness. We have organized camps, from time to time go to the ground to meet people. But it is the pollution board that can take action,” said Amarjit Singh.
Another senior official of the agriculture department in Patiala said, “We are stuck in the middle.” “Government wants change but no action can be taken against farmers.”
This officer was also upset with the suspension of his comrades. “We work very hard and still get suspensions. If we don’t have the power to take action, how can we bring about change? The game of politics and vote bank is a hindrance to change.
According to him, the central government Cancel In view of the protest of the farmers, out of the three agricultural laws, the farmers’ unions have been encouraged. “Many times when we go to the fields, the farmers surround us and do not let us go. The Patiala official said, “We will have to take the help of the police to go back.”
slow change in mindset
Dr. Hardeep Singh Sabkhi, Assistant Professor at Krishi Vigyan Kendra, Patiala, a part of the National Agricultural Research System (NARS), said, the older generation is established in its own way, but there is still hope for the young farmers.
“There is no doubt that it is difficult to convince the farmers to stop stubble burning. But the younger generation is ready to adopt new ways to stop it. There has been a positive change in mindset.”
He said the government is also trying to promote self-help groups that can pool in their resources to buy machinery, which is gaining some traction, at least among young farmers.
Hardeep said, “Earlier farmers were not ready to listen, but now some youth are coming forward and asking about ways to stop stubble burning.” “There are cases when elders of a family confront us against change during awareness camps. But when the camps are over, the young farmers of the same family start to understand the alternatives of burning the stubble.”
(Edited by Aswari Singh)
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