Farmers-admn confrontation on burning straw set to intensify

Tribune News Service

Faridkot, October 16

In a stand-off between farmers and the district administration over the stubble burning issue, the confrontation is set to intensify further in Faridkot after the district administration on Tuesday banned the use of combine harvesters without Super Straw Management System (Super-SMS).

Super-SMS is an additional equipment attached with the combine harvester to cut the standing stubble in the small pieces and spread on the soil surface. In this crop harvesting with Super-SMS, straw management and crop harvesting, both are done in a single operation through modified combine harvesters.

While most of the combine harvesters in this area are without Super-SMS and over 80 per cent of paddy crop in this area is yet to be harvested, banning the use of combine harvesters without Super-SMS is all set to sharpen the confrontation between the district administration and the farmers’ union as almost all paddy crop is harvested with the help of combine harvesters.

Faridkot Deputy Commissioner Rajiv Parshar on Tuesday issued prohibitory orders, promulgating Section 144 of CrPC, banning the use of combine harvesters without Super-SMS.

Saying the harvesting of paddy crop without Super-SMS has devastating effects on the environment as the farmers burn the standing stubble, so a combine harvester without Super-SMS has been banned to save the environment, said Rajiv Prashar.

However, the farmers’ union said while most of the combine harvesters in this area were without Super-SMS, so banning all these machines would play havoc with the farmers. Moreover, the meteorology department has sounded alert about the high rainfall in the next three days in Punjab.

At a time when the farmers’ crop has ripened and the inclement weather conditions are knocking at the door, banning the combine harvester without Super-SMS will push the farmers to more crisis, said Sukhdev Singh Kokrikalan, general secretary, BKU (Ekta-Sidhupur).

Faridkot DC Rajiv Prashar said the state government had already made it mandatory to combine owner to make change in their old machine up to October 1, 2017, by installing Super-SMS and the state government is providing subsidy to promote adoption of this straw management system. If the owners of combine harvesters are not complying with these directions of the state government, they are violating the law, said the DC.

He said that after use of Super-SMS, farmers can go for seeding of wheat crop with the help of happy seeder. Sources in the combine harvesters manufacturing industry said that modifying the existing harvesters with Super-SMS was not practicable as they needed to make changes in existing machinery and replacement of existing engine with high power ones

There are more practical problems, the Super-SMS does not work effectively if paddy straw has little bit moisture and it will cause delay in preparing the field for wheat sowing, said the farmers.