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Wheat harvesting: Farm fires back in Punjab, 102 reported in fortnight
Punjab records 22 farm fires in a day, total count reaches 102 during wheat harvest season. PPCB data shows decline in incidents compared to last year.
Punjab recorded 22 farm fires on Saturday taking the total count to 102 cases during this wheat harvest season. This is the highest single-day jump in farm fire incidents, as per the data provided by Punjab Pollution Control Board (PPCB). Of 102 farm fires reported so far, Bathinda leads the chart with 13 incidents, followed by Ferozepur and Gurdaspur with 11 cases each.
PPCB officials said the total number of incidents has declined when compared to last year during the corresponding period. In 2023, on the corresponding date, the state’s total farm fire count was 169, while it was 2,128 in 2022.
PPCB starts monitoring the farm fires from April 15 onwards, when the wheat harvesting in the state begins and ends on May 30, when the farmers start preparing their fields for paddy sowing.
The farm fire incidents are generally less during the wheat season as the wheat stubble is used as cattle fodder. This year, the crop has been sown on over 35.08 lakh hectares (86 lakh acres) and the state is expecting a bumper harvest of 172 lakh metric tonnes, with nearly all districts reporting a per acre output of 22 quintals. The Punjab agriculture department has pegged the total production at 162 lakh tonnes, which is 1 lakh tonnes higher than the 2022-23 rabi season. Based on these estimates, the state food and civil supplies department has pegged the procurement targets at 132 lakh tonnes.
According to the data provided by PPCB, the state recorded 13,420 cases in 2020, 10,100 in 2021, 14,511 in 2022, and 11, 353 in 2023.
PPCB chairman Adarshpal Vij said that farm fires are likely to decline this year as compared to the last two years.
“This, descending trend, is a positive sign. We are hopeful that the number of farm fires will come down as compared to last season. Farmers have enough time left for paddy sowing therefore, there shouldn’t be a need to burn wheat crop residue to get the fields ready for sowing. Farmers are being encouraged to adopt in-situ residue management,” Vij said.
Punjab agriculture officials said that most of the farmers were using the wheat stubble as fodder and fire is being set to the roots left after harvesting.
A PPCB official, pleading anonymity, however, said it’s too early to tell if the farm fire incidents will dip or not. “The decline in the incidents is partially due to delayed harvesting owing to the late maturing of wheat crops. “There would be an uptick in farm fires in the coming days as harvesting has already peaked in the state,” he said.
“Farm fires are likely to rise in the coming days but they are likely to remain below last year’s count. This month, there had been several rainfall activities which have delayed the burning of wheat residue,” the PPCB official added.
The farm fires post the paddy harvesting, during October-November are more severe and widespread. Farmers usually have a shorter window to clear their fields for the winter crop, invariably, burn the stubble sending up plumes of smoke that drift over to large population centres, sinks and chokes settlements in toxic smog.
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8.57LMT wheat arrives in mandis
Punjab Mandi Board officials said that around 8.57 lakh metric tonnes (LMT) of wheat arrived in the grain markets across the state on Saturday. With this, the total arrival in the state has already touched 85.45 LMT. Of this, around 81.68 LMT have already been purchased by government procurement agencies and private players. Of this total purchase, only 28.09 LMT has been lifted from the markets.
