120 stubble-burning incidents in five days

Tribune News Service

Karnal, September 30

With paddy season coming to an end, stubble-burning incidents have been reported from across the state in spite of a ban on it.

As per the Haryana State Pollution Control Board (HSPCB), 120 incidents of active fire locations (AFLs) were recorded by the Haryana Space Applications Centre (HARSAC) September 25 and 29.

This puts in question the claims of the Agriculture and Farmers’ Welfare Department of keeping a vigil on farmers.

The department has divided the state into three categories — red, orange and green — based on the AFLs recorded during the last paddy season. There are 332 villages in the red zone and 673 in the orange zone.

The HSPCB data shows that Karnal is leading the tally with 29 AFLs followed by Kurukshetra (23), Kaithal (17), Ambala (14), Fatehabad (14), Yamunanagar (8), Hisar (7), Jind (3), Panipat (2), Panchkula (1), Palwal (1) and Rewari (1).

“The HARSAC has recorded 120 AFLs. The figure is yet to be confirmed,” an HSPCB official said.

S Narayanan, member secretary, HSPCB, said: “The target is to keep the number of stubble-burning incidents lower than the last paddy season. I have advised all Deputy Commissioners to ensure the availability of eco-friendly harvesting equipment in villages where stubble-burning was reported last year.” He added the district authorities would take action against farmers violating the ban.