18,596 MT of paddy arrives at grain markets in Ludhiana district

Tribune News Service

Manav Mander

Ludhiana, October 2

In the district, a total of 18,596 metric tonnes of paddy arrived in the grain markets for procurement till Monday evening. Of the total arrival, 13,263 MT is basmati and 5,333 metric tonnes is parmal.

Arrival of parmal variety was low and according to agriculture experts, it would take another week to ripen and arrival of the variety will pick up in the coming week.

Till Monday, four cases of stubble burning were reported from Ludhiana district. Of these, one case was reported today and others in past few days.

The three incidents of stubble burning were reported from Shejo Majra, Sherian and Noorpur, all in Machhiwara block, while the today’s incident was reported from Bahadurpur.

Meanwhile, an awareness campaign was launched by the district administration today in which Deputy Commissioner Surabhi Malik flagged off an awareness van under the ‘Prali Prabandhan Chetna Yatra’ to address issues related to crop residue management.

“It will sensitise farmers to ill-effects of burning paddy and how they can maintain health and fertility of the soil by using in-situ management techniques,” Malik said.

Chief Agriculture Officer Narinder Singh suggested ex-situ management through strategic mapping of villages, establishing briquetting/pelleting plants at strategic locations and developing a supply chain for utilising straw as fuel in various industries and for biomass power generation, compressed biogas production, bio-ethanol, packaging material, etc.,

Dr RK Singh, Additional Director General, Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR), said Haryana and UP had shown considerable decrease in cases of stubble burning and that had become possible as different departments worked collectively towards the cause.

Underlining the detrimental effects of air pollution on the environment, climate and human health, he elaborated that burning one tonne of paddy straw produces 3 kg of particulate matter, 60 kg of carbon monoxide, 1,460 kg of carbon dioxide, 2 kg of sulphur dioxide and 199 kg of ash. It not only leads to soil nutrient loss but also negatively affects the temperature, pH, moisture and organic matter.

Director, ICAR-Agricultural Technology Application Research Institute (ATARI), Dr Parvender Sheoran, said ICAR-ATARI would identify ‘residue burning hotspots’ and mark red, green and orange zones at block, village and individual levels.

“Our ancestors were not aware how stubble can be used in various forms in a constructive manner. A lot of research has been done and today everyone, including farmers, are aware about using stubble in a constructive way. Unless everyone becomes aware and understand the fact that the environment is everybody’s property and all are responsible for protecting it, we cannot work towards protecting it,” he added.

Awareness campaign launched

An awareness campaign was launched by the district administration on Monday in which Deputy Commissioner Surabhi Malik flagged off an awareness van under the ‘Prali Prabandhan Chetna Yatra’ to address issues related to crop residue management.

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#Environment #Farm Fires #Pollution #Stubble Burning