State to launch crop residue mgmt in situ

Sushil Manav

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, April 18

The Centrally funded ‘Promotion of Agricultural Mechanisation for In Situ Management of Crop Residue’ scheme will be launched in the state. The Centre has allocated Rs 215 crore for the scheme for management of crop stubble on the field itself. The scheme will also be implemented in Punjab, Uttar Pradesh and Delhi to improve air quality in the NCR and will be monitored by the Prime Minister’s Office.

The in situ management of crop residue involves management of the residue in the field by sowing the next crop using equipment while the stubble is still standing and letting the straw mix in soil and work as manure. It does not involve collection of paddy straw for use as fuel in power generation or convert its products like bio-char for used as fertiliser.

The contours of the scheme were finalised at a meeting of high-level task force headed by the Prime Minister’s Principal Secretary Nripendra Misra recently. Chief Secretaries of Punjab, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh and Delhi are members of the high-level task force.

Sources say the burning of wheat straw is also rampant in the state, but the government will primarily focus on preventing paddy stubble burning. Since wheat straw is burnt in summer, its smoke disappears soon.

However, burning of paddy stubble causes smog in Delhi during winters, as the smoke mixes with fog to pollute the air.

“Under the action plan, 6000 straw management implements will be given to farmers on 50 per cent subsidy. Eight types of equipment have been selected for this purpose. We plan to promote setting up 900 custom hiring centres by farmers’ associations or cooperative societies. These will be given straw management equipment on 80 per cent subsidy,” says DK Bahera, Director, Agriculture and Farmers Welfare Department, Haryana, who also attended the meeting.

He says a sum of Rs 35 crore has been reserved for information, education and communication (IEC) purposes, so that people can be educated against stubble burning.

Last year, the state government distributed 9,496 implements on subsidy and helped farmers’ groups set up 421 custom hiring centres in the state.

A sum of Rs 75 crore was received from the Centre for the scheme last year, of which Rs 66 crore can be spent.

Paddy is grown on 13.2 lakh hectares in the state. Of this, basmati is cultivated on 7.67 lakh hectares and non-basmati on 5.53 lakh hectares.

Agriculture experts are of the view that the stubble of non-basmati variety, which is burnt on the field, can be used as fodder for animals.

“Our plan is to either manage stubble on 5.53 lakh hectares, or persuade farmers to opt for diversification and grow some other crop,” says Bahera.