Putting out farm fires

Market-based solutions show the way forward

The pernicious practice of burning crop residue, which has defied all attempts to curb it till now, may reduce noticeably in the approaching kharif harvesting season, thus saving north India, particularly Delhi, from turning into a virtual smoke chamber. This hope emanates from the changed perspective on this menace. Instead of treating it as a legally barred activity requiring penal action, it is now viewed aptly as an economic imperative for farmers needing a market-based solution. Given the urgency to plant the next crop as quickly as possible, farmers generally do not have time to let the previous crop’s residue