The nation’s capital continues to be one of the most-polluted cities in the world. Over the last few years, the situation has been alarming and drastic measures have been taken for regulating the sources of pollution. It has required institutions to close down their activities under the threat of air pollution. The pollutants have the origin outside the national capital. But the activities in Punjab and Haryana, as carried out in the fields, have a disastrous impact on the pollution level in the National Capital Region. This requires focussed attention as the pollution level has even reached alarming proportions. In fact, the National Capital Region (NCR) is presently facing this acute problem of helplessness.
India is infamous for being environmentally highly polluted. The NCR travels into the danger zone; and that phase of this year’s cycle has already begun. Whatever may be the efforts in other spheres, one socioeconomic factor is the impact of agricultural activities practised in Punjab and Haryana. As autumn sets in, farmers in Punjab have begun harvesting the kharif paddy crop and preparing the fields for the winter crops. As has been the practice, despite official injunctions, paddy stubbles are being set on fire, raising fears of a hike in air pollution across the northern States, including New Delhi. Aggravating the problem is the retreat of the southwest monsoon, setting off north-westerly winds which blow into the plains, carrying the smoke from the stubbles.
Paddy is grown on 30 lakh hectares of land in Punjab. After harvesting, about 20 million tonnes of paddy straw is left in the fields.
It is estimated that 15 million tonnes of straw are burnt every year. On a sunny afternoon, a group of six farmers in their sixties in Rolu Majra village in Rupnagar district are weighing the options for disposing the paddy stubbles. Burning the crop residue is the “unanimous” decision unless there is financial compensation from the Government. To solve the problem of stubbles without burning, the State has provided agro-machines and other equipments, including mulchers and choppers, at subsidised rates to farmers and cooperative societies on a Central outlay of around Rs 650 crore for 2018-20. However, farmers and agri experts feel the number of machines is inadequate. Besides the high cost of using them, given the rising costs of diesel, they will not serve the purpose of putting an end to stubble burning, at least during the ongoing harvesting season.
A micro-level feedback indicates a disturbing scenario. “Our village society (Rolu Majra Cooperative Society) has so far received one Happy Seeder machine.
There are five villages, Samrauli, Santpur, Bhoor Majra, Samana Kalan and Rolu Marja, which this society caters to. In these villages, an area of around 5,000 acres is farmland. Now, tell me how will one Happy Seeder machine help farmers of all these villages? It will take months to sow the wheat if everyone in these villages wants to use this machine,” say Amarjit Singh, who has sown paddy on five acres.
The tractor-mounted Happy Seeder machine can cut and lift the previous crop (in this case the rice straw) and sow a new (wheat) crop in its place. It also deposits the straw over the sown area as mulch. The machine can be operated with a 45-HP tractor and cover about one acre in about an hour and a quarter.
Surjit Singh, who has planted paddy in around eight acres, says, “I have a tractor of only 35 HP; and hence, I cannot put the Happy Seeder to use in my field. After harvesting paddy, just to clean the stubbles from my field by using machinery attached to the tractor or engaging labour will cost me around Rs 5,000-Rs 6,000/acre. Who will bear this cost? If the Government assures of paying the amount, I will not burn straw; otherwise, I have no other option. I will burn the stubbles and I am ready to face the legal consequences of defiance.” Lakhbir Singh, a member of the Rolu Majra Cooperative Society, says, “One Happy Seeder is inadequate. Many more such machines are required to effectively check stubble burning.”
“Also, this year the State Government has made the use of a super straw management system (SMS) compulsory with combine harvester to facilitate in-situ management of crop residue. But this has again added to our costs, which have gone up from around Rs 1,200/acre last to Rs 2,000/acre this season,’ says Gurmekh Singh, who has sown paddy in his three-acre plot. A super SMS attaches to the rear of a combine harvester chops and uniformly spreads loose straw coming out of the combine on the field. Several farmer unions have declared they will continue to burn paddy stubbles unless the Government suitably compensates them for the expenses incurred on alternative methods other than burning for disposing the crop residue. “Farmers choose to burn the paddy residue not out of choice but compulsion. The time lag between harvesting of paddy and for sowing the next crop is very little. We have to harvest and prepare the field for next sowing in a brief window of 20-25 days. Using machinery is not just time-consuming; it’s expensive as well. Burning is the least time-consuming and cheapest option,” adds Singh. As paddy harvesting has begun in Punjab, close to 400 cases of stubble fire incidents have been reported. In 2016, the State had witnessed 80,879 incidents of stubble fire while in 2017 a dip was seen with 43,814 cases, according to Government data.
Optimistic about seeing a drop in stubble burning cases during current season, Jasbir Singh Bains, Director of the Punjab Agriculture Department, says around 14,000 subsidised machines for management of paddy residue have been delivered so far. “In all, 24,315 machines will be supplied this season,” he adds. This annual problem has to be handled with caution and care. It requires resolute and firm handling and should not be exploitative of the farmers. Even this year, the scenario of pollution level in NCR continues to be as was in the last year which by itself is a matter of concern.
What pains one is that manmade disasters are not finding a solution. Instances like the one elaborated above set a vicious circle in motion. This has its own corroding and arresting effects in not prompting a strike in the balance in the socioeconomic structure.
(The writer, a Senior Advocate, is a former All India Service officer, a former diplomat, a former editor, a former President of Orissa High Court Bar Association and a former Advocate General of Odisha.