Stubble burning: From Ground Zero in Punjab, bad news for Delhi-NCR

Govts step up efforts, but farmers say policies unclear, assistance insufficient

Ten times. That’s by how much stubble-burning incidents have already increased in Punjab till September 30 over the same period last year. And the state has barely entered the paddy harvesting season.

Their potato and pea crop ready, farmers in Punjab have started the banned slash-and-burn practice. Once paddy is harvested, stubble burning is bound to increase several times over. 

The air quality in neighbouring land-locked New Delhi, which constantly grapples with deadly pollution from vehicles and round-the-year construction, is now in the “poor” category. This is after the national capital enjoyed the cleanest air in six years (barring 2020), courtesy a healthy monsoon.

Both the state government and the Centre are hoping this year would be different, and they have been in pro-active mode. But on the ground, farmers say not enough is being done. If they have their way, there will be no letup in stubble burning.

As the paddy procurement season kicks off on October 1, Pulwinder Mann, a 52-year-old farmer from Attari, a village in Amritsar some 3 km from the Indo-Pak border, stands hopeful. His fields, lush with shades of green and gold, signal a strong harvest. But hidden within this success is a problem that ignites both controversy and flames across Punjab, Haryana, and New Delhi — stubble burning.

The practice has long been a quick solution for farmers like Mann in Punjab, Haryana and elsewhere, who, after harvesting paddy in late September or early October, have less than a month to prepare for sowing wheat and other rabi crops. To clear their fields swiftly, many farmers burn the leftover paddy stubble. This is by no means a small problem considering that in Punjab alone, paddy is grown across over 3.1 million hectares.

“What can the authorities teach us that we don’t already know?” Mann asks. “Our families have been doing this for generations. Without government help, we can’t find alternatives.”

Stubble burning has become a hot-button issue for politicians in the state and at the Centre. This year, the Punjab Pollution Control Board (PPCB) has identified 16 districts and 663 villages as stubble-burning hotspots. In 2023, these areas accounted for 64 per cent of the 36,663 cases of stubble burning reported between September 15 and November 30.

The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) government, in power in Punjab since 2022, has increased its budget to address the issue. The central government, too, has provided financial support to the state, contributing Rs 1,681 crore between 2018-2019 (FY19) and FY25.

Since 2018, the Centre has supplied Punjab with 130,851 crop residue management (CRM) machines, with an additional 20,000 distributed this year. However, farmers argue that these machines often don’t reach them.

“The subsidies on these machines range from 50 per cent for individuals and 80 per cent for farmer groups, but the dealers inflate machine prices before handing out the subsidy,” says Lakhwinder Singh, a farmer from Ferozepur district. “In the end, the subsidy is of little use. On top of that, these machines suffer wear and tear. A small farmer cannot afford to repair them, so burning stubble remains the easier option.”

Financial aid from the government is not trickling down effectively, say many farmers, who also point to a lack of coherent policies around these measures.

“If you look at how the funds are distributed, you’ll understand the problem,” says Hardeep Singh, a farmer from Patiala. “Why hasn’t there been a significant increase in the allocation for stubble management if it’s such a critical issue?”

The Punjab government has been ramping up its financial commitment, from Rs 40 crore in FY22 under the Congress government to Rs 350 crore in FY24 under AAP — a 75 per cent increase from the Rs 200 crore allocated the previous year. Yet, confusion over the categorisation of funds persists.

In FY22, the funds were allocated under ‘Crop Residue Management’. In FY24, the money was distributed across various categories, including ‘Sub Mechanisation on Agriculture,’ ‘Checking Stubble Burning Practices,’ and ‘Providing Equipment and Machinery’. In FY25, there was no explicit mention of stubble burning in the state Budget, though a Rs 500 crore plan was announced in July.

“Is it fair to blame us farmers when the government itself isn’t clear about its plans?” Singh asks.

In response to the rising number of farm fires, the Punjab government has launched awareness campaigns, invested in biogas plants, and threatened ‘red entries’ to penalise farmers engaging in stubble burning. These 'red-entries' would be marked against their land records, and the marked farmers would not be able to avail of a loan, or mortgage or sell their land. They would also not be able to apply for an arms licence or get their existing arms licence renewed.

The biogas plants, meanwhile, have sparked protests, especially in Ludhiana district, with locals fearing environmental and soil damage. A plant at the Ghungrali Rajputan village in Ludhiana was even forced to shut down due to public pressure.

“We don’t know what’s true or false about these plants,” Mann says. “They could have helped us avoid burning stubble, but the government has failed to convince people. What’s the point of such a big budget if you can’t win public trust?”

Mann stresses that the government must focus on two key issues: farmer-friendly policies and ensuring minimum support prices (MSP). Only then, he says, will real progress be made in solving the stubble-burning crisis.

For now, though, the news isn’t good.