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Taming stubble fires: Farm unions slam Punjab government for ‘red entries’ in land records
The unions threatened a stir to prevent the state from implementing such measures and expressed hope that the government would reverse these anti-farmer decisions. They have demanded financial assistance of ₹5,000 per acre for stubble management.
Various farm unions in Punjab have criticised the government’s decision to mark ‘red entries’ in the revenue records of farmers which implies that those found involved in stubble burning will not be able to avail loans, mortgage and sell their land. Additionally, the farmers will also be denied gun licences.
The unions threatened a stir to prevent the state from implementing such measures and expressed hope that the government would reverse these anti-farmer decisions.
Bharatiya Kisan Union (Dakonda) general secretary Jagmohan Singh said: “Farmers, across Punjab, have no choice but to burn stubble. They have repeatedly requested financial assistance of ₹5,000 per acre for stubble management, but the government has done nothing.”
The Punjab government has been under pressure to curb farm fires that have started early this season, setting the alarm bells ringing. In the past, FIRs have been registered against the errant farmers and also red entries were made in their revenue records, but the practice has failed to stop stubble burning. District administrations across Punjab have already started issuing orders to record ‘red entries’ in the revenue records of farmers engaging in stubble burning.
On Tuesday, the Supreme Court sought a report from the Commission for Air Quality Management (CAQM) by Friday on steps taken to prevent farm fires and action taken against officers for allowing such incidents despite past orders to stop them, reacting to news reports of farmers in Punjab starting to burn stubble.
The high-level committee had made an important recommendation for the states of Haryana and Punjab to discourage stubble burning by denying minimum support price (MSP) to farmers who indulge in such actions and “put in place mechanisms for making a red entry in farm records for all cases of stubble burning.”
This time, cases of stubble burning have been reported 15 days before the start of paddy harvest, which usually begins on October 1. Most of the fires are being reported from the areas where the early maturing variety of premium aromatic basmati is harvested, with Amritsar leading the pack, said officials.
Every year, the northern region, especially Delhi and its surrounding areas faces a public health crisis in the run-up to and during most of the winter season. The crisis begins with the farm fires in Punjab, Haryana, and Uttar Pradesh, where farmers set fire to hundreds of square kilometres of paddy fields after harvesting them to clear them of residue, posing severe health and environmental risks. It causes a smog jacket to form over northern India.
Every kharif season, paddy is cultivated on nearly seven million acres, which produces 22 million tonnes of paddy stubble.
The unions argued that instead of providing financial assistance of ₹5,000 per acre to help farmers manage stubble, the state government was unnecessarily resorting to such coercive measures.
The farm unions also emphasised that the only sustainable solution to stubble burning was crop diversification, which not only would address this issue and would also mitigate the critical problem of water scarcity.
BKU (Ekta Ugrahan) president Joginder Singh Ugrahan said, “Instead of addressing the problem of stubble management, the government is turning to pressure tactics. Chief minister Bhagwant Mann has recently assured that private biogas plants would collect stubble from paddy fields and pay farmers ₹3,000 per acre. Instead of implementing the CM’s promises, government officials are issuing threats.”
Last year, the total farm fire count in Punjab dipped by 25% in comparison to 2022 figures. Against the count of 49,922 in 2022, the number came down to 36,623 in 2023. However, the area under stubble fires increased by 27% (19 lakh acres in 2023 against 15 lakh acres in 2022).
Sarwan Singh Pandher, convener of the Kisan Mazdoor Morcha, added: “Stubble burning contributes only 2% of total pollution, and it has been proven that it doesn’t significantly impact air quality. Will the Punjab government dare threaten industrial owners for their role in air pollution? Farmers are being unfairly blamed.”
