The silver lining on the clouds of farm smoke

Rising labour costs, a narrow window between harvest & sowing, and declining farm incomes have pushed farmers in many states to treat stubble burning as routine

The annual stubble-burning season has started. In this widely dreaded practice, farmers set fire to crop residue — the thick remnants left rooted in the soil after paddy harvest — in the field. Rising labour costs, a narrow window between paddy harvest and sowing period for the next crop, and declining farm incomes have pushed farmers in several states, from Punjab to Madhya Pradesh, to treat stubble burning as routine.

In a country as diverse as India, the Shahjahanpur model might not be the perfect solution for every stubble burning crisis. Instead, it shines a light on the less-discussed idea of process innovation and reminds other states and districts that a solution does exist to this problem. (HT Archive)

This year, however, there is a silver lining amid the dark clouds of carbon that threaten the air, most noticeably in the national capital and abutting cities. It comes from process innovation and collaborative governance in Shahjahanpur, Uttar Pradesh.

Shahjahanpur district was once infamous for recording the highest number of stubble-burning incidents in Uttar Pradesh. Since 2021, such incidents have fallen by 67%. Ramji Mishra, a rural reporter who investigated this small miracle for ON AIR, our monthly bilingual webzine on air quality, travelled from village to village in the district and sent us the details, including block-level fire count data. As we checked and cross-checked the evidence, we identified three key innovations that changed the game.

First, the administration worked closely with local farmers — small and marginal, as well as well-off farmers. The district magistrate and local officials visited villages at night, when most of the stubble burning occurs, and held chaupals (village meetings). They discussed the health risks for the farmers’ own families while also listening to their concerns. Farmers who emerged as local leaders then began peer discussions. As a result, farmers and the administration jointly agreed to look for alternatives.

This stands in contrast to the vilification of farmers in Punjab, where fines are preceded by stern diktats. Even the courts have contributed to the criminalisation of Punjab’s farmers, by signalling a willingness to jail them for burning stubble. If their land is marked red, indicating a stubble-based fire, they may be debarred from several basics, such as mortgaging their lands, receiving government benefits, and availing of loans.

Such an approach does not encourage collaboration; it breeds mistrust and reduces an agricultural and public-health crisis into a law-and-order problem.

Second, the Shahjahanpur collaboration tested market-based solutions that allowed farmers to earn from stubble. Crucially, it created incentives to use technology and modern machinery to cut and remove stubble from fields — the single biggest hurdle across states. Although the tools are well known and available, persuading time-pressed farmers to use them has long been difficult. Through the Central-state Crop Residue Management (CRM) scheme and UP Krishi Yantra Anudan Yojana, subsidised farm equipment was offered to farmers. Deployment of industrial balers — machines that sweep loose straw from fields and compress it into tightly bound, dense rectangular or cylindrical blocks — was very useful.

Making stubble removal part of the value chain was central to this smart approach. By collecting, compressing and selling stubble blocks, some farmers reportedly increased their annual incomes, an outcome that would not have been possible without first focussing on non-burning alternatives.

Not every farmer appears to have benefited in such a manner, but most now see a clear pathway for using stubble without incurring losses. They are willing to try these options because they have already been part of the conversation.

Third, the solutions are rooted in the state economy and are strikingly circular.

Compressed biogas (CBG) plants powered by stubble meet energy needs. These plants are funded through existing government schemes such as GOBARdhan (Galvanizing Organic Bio-Agro Resources Dhan) that support public good and reduce project risk. Under the supply agreements in Shahjahanpur, CBG plants purchased compressed stubble bales directly from farmers and baler operators right at the farm, paying a guaranteed price ranging between ₹300 and ₹350 per quintal. Some farmers sold it for ₹250 per quintal. Sending stubble to local gaushalas or making farm compost is also an undervalued practice. Dalit women working as informal farmhands, whom one of us had earlier interviewed in Punjab, described it as a valuable source of seasonal income. Without state support, however, they faced barriers they could not overcome on their own. Such economic chains create local interdependence, strengthening social pressure on farmers to continue managing stubble responsibly. These local gains make the system both accountable and sustainable, and they offer a pathway for scaling similar systemic changes across the country.

In a country as diverse as India, the Shahjahanpur model might not be the perfect solution for every stubble burning crisis. Instead, it shines a light on the less-discussed idea of process innovation and reminds other states and districts that a solution does exist to this problem.

Bharati Chaturvedi is the founder of the non-profit Chintan and the co-founder and publisher of On-Air. Nidhi Jamwal is a senior climate journalist and Editor of Chintan’s ON AIR webzine. The views expressed are personal