On the day when Delhi AQI touched 1500 in the morning, Punjab witnessed the highest number of stubble-burning incidents of this season on Monday, with over 1000 fresh farm fires reported in a single day.
As paddy harvest season reaches its peak, the practice of setting crop residue on fire to quickly clear fields has once again emerged as a key contributor to the alarming air pollution in the Delhi-NCR region.
On the day when Delhi AQI touched 1500 in the morning, Punjab witnessed the highest number of stubble-burning incidents of this season on Monday, with over 1000 fresh farm fires reported in a single day.
This marks a significant surge compared to the previous record of 730 incidents earlier this month. Despite this spike, the overall trend in Punjab this season shows a significant decline in stubble burning compared to previous years. However, while the state has made progress in reducing stubble burning, the practice remains a significant contributor to air pollution in the region, particularly in Delhi.
Meanwhile, the cases of stubble burning are also on the rise in Haryana, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, and Delhi, indicating a clear link between stubble burning and deteriorating air quality in the national capital region remains clear.
Farm fire cases reduced in Punjab
Punjab recorded its highest number of stubble-burning cases this season on November 18, with 1,251 fresh farm fires reported in just one day. Data from the Punjab Remote Sensing Centre indicates that from September 15 to November 18, Punjab recorded a total of 9,655 farm fires, representing a dramatic 71 percent decrease from the previous year's 33,719 cases over the same period.
The Muktsar district was the hardest hit, with 247 incidents reported on November 18 alone, followed by Moga (149) and Ferozepur (130). Yet, this year’s figures still pale in comparison to the alarming numbers seen in the past, with Punjab recording 48,489 and 36,663 farm fires in 2022 and 2023, respectively. In 2020, Punjab saw over 76,000 incidents.
Despite these reductions, stubble burning remains a major environmental issue, as farmers often resort to it due to limited time and inadequate machinery to manage crop residue. As the window for sowing Rabi crops like wheat is narrow, burning paddy stubble becomes a quicker option for many small-scale farmers.
Rajasthan, Delhi farm fires on rise
While Punjab has seen a decline, other states like Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, and Delhi have experienced a rise in farm fires. Business Standard reported that Rajasthan, in particular, reported 2,060 farm fires in 2024, the highest since 2020, contributing heavily to the region's pollution. Notably, Delhi has also seen a sharp uptick in stubble-burning cases. Between September 15 and November 17, 2024, Delhi recorded 12 cases, a figure that underscores the role of nearby states in exacerbating the city’s pollution crisis.
Penalty for farm fires doubled after SC ruling
Due to high numbers of farm fires leading to rising air pollution in the national capital, the Punjab and Haryana governments resorted to imposing fines on farmers or arresting them.
In October, the Supreme Court rapped the Haryana and Punjab governments over the non-prosecution of violators found guilty of stubble burning and summoned the state chief secretaries to appear before it on October 23 and submit an explanation. The SC said that stubble burning is not merely an issue of breach of law but it also violates citizens' fundamental right to live in a pollution-free environment, guaranteed under Article 21 of the Constitution.
Following the top courts’ criticism, the state governments of Punjab and Haryana doubled the fines imposed on farmers who burn crop residue.The penalty for burning stubble on farms larger than five acres has been doubled to Rs 30,000, while smaller farmers face penalties ranging from Rs 5,000 to Rs 10,000.
Are farmers really at fault?
The move to increase the penalty for stubble burning sparked strong opposition from farmer bodies in Punjab, who argue that the government is unfairly penalizing them without addressing the root causes of the issue.
Farmers’ unions have long pointed to the lack of adequate crop residue management machinery, such as super seeders, happy seeders, and mulchers, as a major barrier to preventing stubble burning. They claim that despite subsidies, only 30 percent of the required machinery has been made available to farmers, leaving many unable to manage their crop residue in an environmentally sustainable manner.
According to a report by PTI, Sukhdev Singh Kokrikalan, General Secretary of Bhartiya Kisan Union (Ekta Ugrahan), slammed the government’s move as “anti-farmer,” pointing out that farmers who had the necessary machinery had refrained from burning stubble altogether. He called the penalty hike a tactic to increase pressure on farmers, arguing that the government should instead focus on providing the tools needed to manage stubble effectively.
Pollution beyond stubble burning
While stubble burning is a significant contributor to Delhi's pollution, it is far from the only cause. According to experts, industry and transportation combined contribute to over 75 percent of Delhi’s pollution, with stubble burning accounting for up to 40 percent of the city's particulate matter (PM2.5) during peak seasons. As per a PTI report, Kisan Mazdoor Morcha leader Sarwan Singh Pandher pointed out that the government’s focus on farmers alone is misplaced when industries remain largely unaccountable for their role in pollution.
The continued reliance on stubble burning by farmers is not just an environmental issue but a socio-economic one. With the government failing to provide sufficient support for crop residue management, small farmers remain trapped in a cycle of burning, despite their best efforts to avoid it. The increase in fines and penalties without addressing the underlying causes risks exacerbating the farmer’s plight rather than solving the pollution problem.
Farmers tricking NASA satellite
One of the key tools in monitoring stubble burning is satellite data. While the number of reported farm fires has decreased, experts, including Hiren Jethva, a senior research scientist at NASA, have raised concerns that farmers may be timing their process of stubble burning in a way to avoid detection by satellite systems. According to a report by The Economic Times, Jethva’s analysis suggests that farmers may be setting fires after satellite overpasses, leading to discrepancies in the reported data. His observations point to localized plumes of smoke detected in the late afternoon, a period after the usual monitoring by NASA and NOAA satellites.
This raises questions about the true extent of the problem. “According to govt data, the number of farm fires decreased by 80–90% compared to 2020. However, the Aerosol Optical Depth (AOD), which measures the concentration of particulates in the atmosphere, has remained unchanged over Punjab and Haryana over the past six to seven years. If farm fires reduced so drastically, why hasn't the AOD decreased?” ET quoted Chandra Bhushan, CEO of iFOREST (International Forum for Environment, Sustainability, and Technology).
However, local officials have rejected the claims of deliberately scheduling stubble burning by farmers to avoid detection and discrepancies in government data. According to the Chairman of the Punjab Pollution Control Board, Professor Adarshpal Vig, data is collected using both ISRO and NASA satellites. “Punjab Remote Sensing Centre gathers data on farm fires from various satellites. Our data also has fire incidents at night. So, avoiding detection by satellites can be a figment of the imagination of a few but not the reality,” ET report quoted Vig.