Sunday, 13 Oct, 2024
By: Yash Gupte
The stubble burning season usually begins around mid-September and continues till 15th November. Photo credits: IANS
Despite a prohibition, firecrackers and smoke from burning stubble combine every Diwali to form a deadly cocktail that causes air pollution levels in Delhi-NCR to skyrocket.
As the monsoon is set to withdraw from the north and north-west India, the annual practice of stubble burning which is considered as one of the major contributors of air pollution in the northern part of the country has been reported from the states of Punjab and Haryana. The instances of the stubble burning had been captured by the satellite of National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA). Despite a prohibition, firecrackers and smoke from burning stubble combine every Diwali to form a deadly cocktail that causes air pollution levels in Delhi-NCR to skyrocket. Taking into consideration the beginning of the stubble burning season in the northern parts of the country, India Tracker takes a look at the number of instances of stubble burning in last few years and its contribution to the air pollution during winter in Delhi-NCR.
According to the Indian Meteorological Department (IMD), the peak season of stubble burning will commence from the first week of the October when there is a complete withdrawal of monsoon from the states of Punjab and Haryana. During this period, the farmers are in a hurry to harvest the paddy crop in order to sow the Rabi crops. Paddy harvesting starts early in Majha area, which comprises Amritsar, Tarn Taran, Pathankot and Gurdaspur districts. The stubble burning season usually begins around mid-September and continues till 15th November. However, the instances of stubble burning begin to fall by late November, the practice continues in eastern part of Uttar Pradesh till late December. According to the experts, the highest peak of stubble burning is recorded in November when the number of burning instances per day are reported from 5000 to 6000.
The state government's plan to contribute to the monetary incentive given to farmers for not burning stubble was rejected last week by the Centre. The state administration had suggested paying paddy farmers Rs 2,500 per acre. It was recommended that the Punjab and Delhi governments would each pay Rs 1,000 per acre, with the Center paying Rs 1,500 per acre.
The chart below shows the instances of stubble burning from 2016 to 2021 in the states of Punjab and Haryana.
Source: Council on Energy, Environment and Water
Maximum number of stubble burning incidents were reported in 2016. Around 1,08,298 stubble burning instances were reported from Punjab and Haryana in 2016. The National Policy for Management of Crop Residues (NPMCR, 2014) started by the Ministry of Agriculture, Government of India, to reduce crop residue burning and prevent environmental degradation, places a strong emphasis on advancing in situ crop residue management, technology intervention, crop diversification, capacity building, farmer awareness, and the creation and execution of related regulations. Following a ruling by the National Green Tribunal (NGT), India was given the go-ahead to strictly enforce the NPMCR and outlaw the open burning of crop residue in agricultural lands. Nevertheless, despite a regulatory and legal framework, 2016 saw the most crop residue burning incidents recorded.
The period from 2017-2019 witnessed a drop in number of stubble burning instances as the state governments imposed heavy fines on farmers and initiated campaigns aimed at generating awareness among the farmers. But, the year 2020 witnessed a rise in instances as the number went up to 79,518 from 54,000 in the previous year. The reason behind the rise was attributed to the inflow of migrant workers to their hometowns in the wake of covid-19 pandemic. Many migrant workers lost their jobs due to the pandemic and this forced them to work in the field in their villages. The instances of stubble burning further increased to 86,296 in 2021.
Source: Council on Energy, Environment and Water
Stubble burning or waste burning is the largest contributor of pollution in Delhi from 15th October to 15th November which is the peak period of stubble burning in the states of Punjab, Haryana and Uttar Pradesh. Dust remains the second largest contributor during this period. Later, in the period between 15th November to 15th December, stubble burning, and dust and household heating & cooking contributed equally to the PM 2.5 pollution in Delhi. Household heating and cooking contributed maximum (32%) to the pollution in the capital.
Stubble burning has a lot of hazardous effects on the environment. Pollution is the major result of the practice. It also affects the soil fertility as one centimeter of soil is heated by burning paddy straw, raising the soil's temperature to 33.8 to 42.2 degrees Celsius. This affects the nutrients and bacteria in the soil.
Data shows that stubble burning is the major contributor of pollution in Delhi and surrounding areas and needs to be addressed in an effective manner in the earliest. The central and the state governments need to work hand in hand with a spirit of cooperative federalism and take major steps towards addressing the issue of stubble burning in northern India.
