Punjab recorded 345 fresh cases of farm fires on Sunday, with Sangrur continuing to witness maximum 116 such incidents, taking the total case count in the state past 6,600. From September 15 to November 10, Punjab saw 6,611 stubble-burning incidents, according to the Punjab Remote Sensing Centre data.
Among the districts, Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann’s home district — Sangrur — reported 116 farm fire cases, followed by Mansa 44, Ferozepur 26, Moga and Faridkot 24 each and Muktsar 20.
Stubble burning in Punjab and Haryana after paddy harvesting in October and November is often blamed for the rise in air pollution in Delhi. As the window for growing Rabi crops, especially wheat, after the paddy harvest is very short, some farmers set their fields on fire to quickly clear off the crop residue for the sowing of the next crop.
Punjab recorded a total of 36,663 farm fires in 2023, registering a 26 per cent drop in such incidents from the previous year. The state recorded 49,922 fire events in 2022, 71,304 in 2021, 76,590 in 2020, 55,210 in 2019 and 50,590 in 2018.
Bride injured in celebratory firing in Punjab's Ferozepur
Ferozepur: In a tragic incident, a bride sustained critical injuries from a stray bullet during a celebratory firing at her wedding near Khai Pheme Ki village in Ferozepur on Sunday. Baljinder Kaur, 23, daughter of Baj Singh from Hasham Toot village, was set to marry Gurpreet Singh from Tarn Taran’s Sarhali Kalan when gunfire erupted among wedding guests. A bullet struck Kaur’s head, leaving her in critical condition. She was immediately rushed to a private hospital, where doctors continue to monitor her situation closely. Deputy Superintendent of Police Sukhwinder Singh confirmed that CCTV footage is under review, and further investigations are underway.
