CAQM orders triple penalty for farm fires

The Commission for Air Quality Management (CAQM) on Friday instructed Punjab officials to simultaneously register an FIR, impose fine and make “red entries” in revenue records against farmers involved in stubble burning.

The central body, which monitors air quality in Delhi-NCR, directed state officials to clamp the triple action plan amid a sharp spike in farm fires in the state, where the official count touched the 1,642-mark on Friday.

Stubble burning showed no signs of abating, crossing the 200-mark for the third consecutive day. The state had recorded 283 cases on October 29, 202 on Thursday and 224 on Friday.

The directions were issued during a review meeting at Kisan Bhawan in Chandigarh. It was attended by Priyank Bharti, Administrative Secretary of the state Department of Science, Technology and Environment, and Lavneet Dubey, Member Secretary, Punjab Pollution Control Board (PPCB). Officials from agriculture departments of Punjab and Haryana were also present on the occasion.

Gurnam Singh, head of the paddy stubble management cell of the CAQM, said the focus was on districts showing a sudden spurt in farm fires such as Sangrur, Bathinda, Tarn Taran and Mansa.

Officials were instructed to intensify deployment of stubble management machinery and ensure that enforcement teams, including the police and pollution control officials, visit the fields jointly to avert law and order issues.

He said the triple action plan was drawn up after satellite data showed that several fires were being lit late evening to dodge the visible infrared imaging radiometer suite (VIIRS) and MODIS aqua satellites, which capture images during the afternoon and midnight.

Dr Vinay Sehgal, Principal Scientist at the Division of Agricultural Physics, CREAMS Laboratory, IARI, New Delhi, said satellites pass over the region between 3.30 pm and 7.30 pm. “Farmers have been setting fire to the residue during this window to escape detection. However, we now map the burnt area, even after the fire is doused, to ensure action against violators,” he said.

87% cases in 13 days

PPCB officials said 87 per cent of farm fires — 1,434 cases — were reported in the past 13 days. Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann’s home district topped the list with 64 fresh cases on Friday, followed by Tarn Taran (44), Ferozepur (12), Kapurthala (12), Bathinda and Patiala (15 each), and Amritsar (11). Cumulatively, Tarn Taran (374), Sangrur (281), Amritsar (197) and Ferozepur (167) account for the bulk of the cases. The PPCB has so far lodged 430 FIRs, made 490 “red entries”, and imposed fines exceeding Rs 27 lakh, of which Rs 15.9 lakh has been recovered.