2O LMT straw to be generated in Patiala district

Mohit Khanna

Patiala, November 8

As paddy harvesting has reached its peak, the agencies estimate that 20 lakh metric tonnes (MT) of residue will be generated in Patiala district.

Deputy Commissioner Sakshi Sawhney said 11, 22, 252 MT of produce, which constitutes 85 per cent, has already arrived in the grain markets to date.

As many as 1,524 farm fires have been reported in the district from October 1 to November 8. A total of 3,336 incidents were reported last year.

A conservative division of number of farmers (94,311) with the number of farm fires reported (1,524) in the district, show that less than 2 per cent (1.61% to be precise) farmers have burnt straw.

Senior rice breeder Dr Buta Singh said 8.5 to nearly 9 tonnes of residue gets generated from each hectare of short and medium duration verities.

He said long duration verities, PUSA-44 and Peeli PUSA, generate nearly 9.5 tonnes of residue per hectare.