Stubble burning cases in Punjab dropped 84% since 2021: MoS
The number of paddy stubble burning cases in the state has dropped 84% in the past three years. The information was shared by the Minister of State for Environment, Forest and Climate Change, Kirti Vardhan Singh, in reply to a question by Shiromani Akali Dal MP Harsimrat Kaur Badal in the Lok Sabha today.
A total of 10,919 cases were reported from September 15 till November 30 last year against 71,304 in 2021. The figures for 2022 (49,922 cases) and 2023 (36,663 cases) indicated a downward trend in the farm fire incidence. The total amount of environmental compensation collected from Punjab farmers last year stood at Rs 1.48 crore.
Haryana also witnessed reduction in the total number of cases from 6,987 in 2021 to only 1,406 last year.
Swadesh Darshan projects
Two sites under the Swadesh Darshan for Punjab were Kanjli Wetland in Kapurthala and Attari in Amritsar said Minister of Tourism Gajendra Singh Sekhawat in reply to a question by Congress MP Gurjeet Singh Aujla. In another question, the minister replied that the Ministry of Tourism had instituted no study to assess the impact of air pollution on tourism and the corresponding revenue loss due to travel advisories and travel plan cancellations related to air pollution.
Improving water availability
Three projects — the Shahpur Kandi Dam project, relining of Rajasthan Feeder and the Sirhind Feeder — are underway for improving the water availability in Punjab said the Minister of State for Jal Shakti Raj Bhushan Chaudhary in reply to a query by MP Satnam Singh Sandhu in the Rajya Sabha.
