Stubble burning: Gopal Rai says Pusa institute’s bio-decomposer can help reduce pollution : The Tribune India

Join Whatsapp Channel

Stubble burning: Gopal Rai says Pusa institute’s bio-decomposer can help reduce pollution

Stubble burning: Gopal Rai says Pusa institute’s bio-decomposer can help reduce pollution

Delhi Environment Minister Gopal Rai during demonstration of bio-decomposer techinque to solve pollution related issues due to stubble burning in the winters, at Pusa Agricultural Institute in New Delhi. PTI



New Delhi, September 16

Delhi Environment Minister Gopal Rai on Wednesday witnessed a demonstration of a bio-decomposer developed by the Indian Agricultural Research Institute to convert crop stubble into manure and said if successful, it will help reduce air pollution.

He said he will discuss the technique, which involves spraying the decomposer on crop stubble, with Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal and later a work plan will be developed for its implementation.

Every year, Delhi’s air quality plummets as farmers in the national capital and neighbouring states burn agricultural stubble to clear their fields before the onset of winter to sow the next crop.

Farmers claim that setting their fields on fire is the only economically viable solution to clear stubble before the sowing season starts.

Rai said the Delhi government will provide the bio-decomposer to farmers free of cost.

“The cost of spraying the decomposer in fields will be borne by the Delhi government so that there is no financial burden on the farmers and an effective solution to the problem of stubble burning can be developed,” he said.

The minister said the Central government has devised a scheme under which subsidy is provided to farmers for using machines to clear crop stubble.

“I believe that the money spent on the purchase of machines and the subsidy can be used for the decomposition of stubble in these states. If successful, the technique will reduce smoke and air pollution,” he said.

The Union Environment Ministry has a very important role to play in this initiative, he added.

Delhi faces air pollution every year in winter due to the burning of crop stubble in neighbouring states, Rai said.

“Punjab produces 20 million tonnes of crop stubble out of which 9 million tonnes was burnt last year. In Haryana, 1.23 million tonnes out of 7 million tonnes was burnt,” he claimed.

Rai said the Delhi government will talk to the Union Environment Ministry and the governments of neighbouring Punjab, Haryana and Uttar Pradesh for coordination in implementing the bio-decomposer technique.

The Delhi government is keen to develop a sustainable and effective solution to the issue of stubble burning that causes major pollution in Delhi, especially during the winter season, he said.

Last year, stubble burning accounted for 44 per cent of Delhi’s air pollution, he said.

An official of the Indian Agricultural Research Institute said it has received an advance order from the Uttar Pradesh government to demonstrate the technique on 25,000 hectares of land.

He said around 10 companies are manufacturing the institute’s bio-decomposer on a large scale. PTI


Top News

Israel says it is poised to move on Rafah

Israel says it is poised to move on Rafah to assault Hamas hold-outs

Netanyahu's Government said Israel 'moving ahead' with groun...

Tibetan government-in-exile, China holding back-channel talks; aiming to revive stalled dialogue process

Tibetan government-in-exile, China holding back-channel talks; aiming to revive stalled dialogue process

From 2002 to 2010, Dalai Lama’s representatives and Chinese ...

JEE-Main 2024 result declared; 56 candidates score 100 percentile

JEE-Main 2024 result declared; 56 candidates score 100 percentile

Out of 56, 15 are from Telangana, 7 each from Andhra Pradesh...

DRG cop killed, another injured in accidental firing in Chhattisgarh’s Dantewada

DRG cop killed, another injured in accidental firing in Chhattisgarh’s Dantewada

The incident took place around 11 pm on Wednesday, say polic...

Phase-2 campaign ends, fate of Rahul, Shekhawat, HDK, Hema to be sealed

Phase-2 campaign ends, fate of Rahul Gandhi, Gajendra Shekhawat, HD Kumaraswamy, Hema Malini to be sealed

88 seats up for grabs across 13 states | Polling to conclude...


Cities

View All