Patiala District sees 418 farm fire cases this season

Tribune News Service

Patiala, May 23

The district witnessed no farm fire on Tuesday. However, Punjab witnessed over 11,275 cases of stubble burning this season with Patiala accounting for 418 cases so far.

Experts said that the number of cases will now not rise much with almost all the fields needed for paddy cleared for the next crop. Further with wet spell forecast for this week, the farmers will now prepare their fields for paddy and therefore the wheat stubble burning cases are almost at their fag end.

According to data, Patiala recorded 418 cases this season as compared to 455 in 2022 and 414 reported in 2021. According to the data available on the PPCB website, Punjab recorded 13,420 cases in 2020, 10,100 in 2021 and 14,511 in 2022.

In April, the farmers did not set their fields on fire due to repeated rain spells. However, with the start of May and the sun out, the farmers wasted no time to prepare their fields for the upcoming paddy season that starts in June.

Experts say the price of dry fodder, made of wheat straw, is rising every year due to which farmers store it. Agriculture officials said most farmers were making fodder from wheat stubble and were just setting its roots on fire. “However, we are trying to create awareness among the farmers by advising them to avoid it as it leads to pollution,” said Agriculture Department officials.

The Punjab Pollution Control Board (PPCB) starts monitoring stubble burning cases from April 15. Every post-wheat season, Punjab witnesses around 7,000 to 10,000 cases, which gradually increase.

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