Farm fires spike as harvest season nears end in Punjab

The past four days have contributed to more than 50% of the cases recorded this year from September 15, ever since the Punjab Remote Sensing Centre started monitoring the farm fires

With the harvest season nearing end in some areas, the state is witnessing spike in farm fires. Punjab recorded 766 farm fires on Friday.

A farmer burns paddy stubble at a field, on the outskirts of Jalandhar on Friday. (PTI)

Whereas the number was 279 in 2021 and 1,111 in 2022 on the same day (i.e. October 27).

The past four days have contributed to more than 50% of the cases recorded this year from September 15, ever since the Punjab Remote Sensing Centre started monitoring the farm fires.

Of total 4,059 cases this season till October 27, 2,113 cases (52%) were recorded between October 24 and 27. As per data, 360 cases were reported on October 24, 398 on October 25 and 589 on October 26.

Tarn Taran recorded 104 cases, followed by Patiala (98) and Sangrur (97).

“As expected, the number has started rising in the last week of October and the cases will peak in the second and third week of November. Though the overall number of farm fires is less than that of in previous years, we are concerned over the rising number as there is no such mechanism to check such large number of farm fires in an area,” said a deputy commissioner requesting anonymity. The number of farm fires is likely to increase in the coming days, said an agriculture department official.

However, the state government is optimistic as minister Brahm Shankar Jimpa said the government is working hard to reduce farm fires. Against 8,147 cases reported last year, 6,742 cases reported in 2021, the state has recorded 4,059 cases so far during the corresponding period.