Centre lauds Haryana for efforts to reduce stubble burning incidents

Chandigarh: The Centre has appreciated efforts made by the Haryana government to bring down the incidents of stubble burning.

Incidents of stubble burning in Haryana have reduced by about 48 per cent as a result of making farmers aware not to burn stubble and providing various financial incentives to them, said a Haryana government statement issued here.

According to the statement, Union Agriculture Minister Narendra Singh Tomar, while holding a meeting through video conference with Agriculture and Environment ministers of Haryana, Punjab, Delhi and Uttar Pradesh regarding crop residue management said Thursday that the Haryana government has taken concrete steps to reduce the incidents of stubble burning.

Tomar said it is the responsibility of the governments to ensure that soil fertility and biodiversity are not harmed by burning stubble, so efforts should be made by the state governments to achieve the goal of zero stubble burning.

Tomar said Rs 3,138 crore has been allocated to the state governments under the Crop Residue Management scheme and Rs 2,675 crore has been spent by the state governments.

The statement said the Haryana government is giving incentives at the rate of Rs 7,000 per acre to the farmers for not growing water-guzzling paddy.

Union Environment, Forest and Climate Change Minister Bhupender Yadav, who joined the meeting through virtual medium, said that in the last two years, with the cooperation of the Central government and the state governments, there has been a significant reduction in the incidents of stubble burning.

Incidents of stubble burning have reduced by about 48 per cent in Haryana and by 30 per cent in Punjab.

Haryana Agriculture Minister J P Dalal said that due to various efforts of the state government, there has been a significant reduction in the incidents of stubble burning.

Dalal said the government has also taken strict steps to ensure that the farmers do not burn the stubble.

A fine was also imposed on farmers for stubble burning and some FIRs were also registered. As a result, there has been a considerable reduction in the incidents of stubble burning, he said.

There were about 15,686 incidents of stubble burning in the year 2016-17. There were 6,987 such incidents in 2021-22. Last year, there was a decrease in the incidents of stubble burning and only 3,661 incidents were reported, whereas in the neighbouring state there were about 49,000 incidents of stubble burning.

In the meeting, Dalal said there are many possibilities of using straw for cow shelters in Rajasthan and packaging in Gujarat.

For this, the central government should cooperate with the state government by making provision of a special package for freight etc. This will open many options for the commercial use of stubble, he said.

Dalal said that due to various efforts of the state government, there has been a significant reduction in the incidents of stubble burning. Last year, 3,661 such incidents were reported in the state and this time the aim of the government is to reduce such incidents and take them to zero-burning.

He said that under the Crop Residue Management scheme, 80,000 machines have been distributed to farmers for in-situ management from the year 2018-19 to the year 2022-23. This year also till August 2, 2023, more than 21,000 farmers have applied for the machines.

He said that under ex-situ management also the straw is being used in the 2G ethanol plant. Apart from this, the state government is giving an incentive of Rs 7,000 per acre to farmers for cultivating crops that consume less water in place of paddy.