Air quality curbs cause 40% loss to rice industry in Haryana

Parveen Arora

Karnal, January 23

With restrictions for air quality control, the rice industry is suffering a lot. As per rice industrialists, due to the curbs they are facing 40 per cent production loss as a mill is allowed to operate five days a week.

Rice husk better biofuel

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Rice industries are allowed to operate for only 5 days but sugar mills are allowed operation for 7 days. This is injustice as both use biofuel. We use rice husk and sugar mill use bagasse. Rice husk is a better biofuel and does not contain sulphur like bagasse. Vijay Setia, former chief, all-India rice exporters association

“We have been allowed to operate the industry for five days a week but, in reality, we get only four days as parboiling is a continuous process,” said Vijay Setia, former president, All India Rice Exporters Association (AIREA). Rice exporters feel discrimination regarding the use of biofuel. They say sugar mills are allowed to operate seven days a week with the use of bagasse, sugarcane waste. “Rice industries are allowed to operate for only five days, while the sugar mills are allowed the operation for seven days, which is injustice with us, as both industries use biofuel. We use rice husk, while the sugar mill uses bagasse. Rice husk is a better biofuel and does not contain sulphur like bagasse,” said Setia, adding that they had raised the issue with the authorities of the Haryana Pollution Control Board as well as with the Commission for Air Quality Management, but to no avail.

They say unfavourable weather conditions are also adding to their woes. “We have procured paddy from the farmers at higher moisture which needs immediate drying to avoid quality losses, but unprecedented weather condition with prolonged rainfall, along with five-day operation of mills, are adding to the quality losses,” said Sushil Jain, state president, HREA.