Four Doaba dists account for just 6% of Punjab’s total farm fire cases so far

Jalandhar, SBS Nagar, Kapurthala, and Hoshiarpur have reported 85 cases out of the 1,418 cases reported across Punjab till Thursday

With stubble burning cases seeing an uptick across the state over the past few days, four Doaba districts—Jalandhar, Shaheed Bhagat Singh Nagar, Kapurthala, and Hoshiarpur—have reported only 6% or 85 incidents so far of the total 1,418 incidents reported in the state till Thursday.

With stubble burning cases seeing an uptick across the state over the past few days, four Doaba districts—Jalandhar, Shaheed Bhagat Singh Nagar, Kapurthala, and Hoshiarpur—have reported only 6% or 85 incidents so far of the total 1,418 incidents reported in the state till Thursday. (HT File)

Kapurthala has reported 48 cases, followed by 26 in Jalandhar, seven in Hoshiarpur, and four in SBS Nagar, an 85% dip in farm fire cases this year to date compared to last year.

Last year, the region accounted for 580 cases, with Kapurthala recording the highest 357, followed by 157 in Jalandhar, 37 in SBS Nagar, and 29 in Hoshiarpur districts. The Punjab Pollution Control Board (PPCB), which monitors stubble burning from September 15 to November 30, had recorded 10,909 farm fire cases in 2024, with Sangrur topping the list at 1,725 incidents.

As many as 13 FIRs have been registered against the farmers for setting ablaze crop residue under section 223 (disobedience to an order duly promulgated by a public servant) of Bharatiya Nayaya Sanhita (BNS). Nine such FIRs were registered in Jalandhar district, followed by three in Hoshiarpur and two in SBS Nagar.

Meanwhile, 18 red entries have been made in the revenue record of farmers in Kapurthala district, 16 in Jalandhar, three in Hoshiarpur, and two in SBS Nagar.

Jalandhar deputy commissioner Himanshu Aggarwal said the district administration has adopted a multi-pronged strategy to curb stubble burning practices, including appointing cluster officers to keep a tab on such cases, imposing environmental compensation, carrying out awareness activities, and providing assistance for crop residue management.

“Several measures were adopted for management of over 1.6 lakh tonnes of paddy straw using ex-situ management techniques at boilers, while nearly 7,000 equipment were provided to the farmers at subsidised rates for in-situ management,” Aggarwal added.

Meanwhile, additional deputy commissioner Avneet Kaur said they have come up with stringent directives to curb farm fires and adopted a zero-tolerance approach towards such a menace.

“Two FIRs were registered against the farmers in the district,” she said.