Lost Straw: Lower Rice Acreage May Result In Fewer Farm Fires

New Delhi: Data

submitted

to the

Commission for Air Quality Management

(CAQM) in

NCR

by the

governments

of Punjab, Haryana and Uttar Pradesh shows land under paddy cultivation in these states has reduced by 7.7% this year compared with last year. The total

paddy straw generation

from

non-basmati variety

of

rice

has also reduced by around 12.4%. CAQM said that based on this data, fewer cases of stubble burning are expected this year than in 2020.

The air commission had directed states to submit action plans to reduce harvest remnant burning this winter, asking each state to promote short duration and early maturing varieties of crops so as to provide a much larger window for paddy straw management.

CAQM said on Friday that the central and the state governments of Punjab, Haryana and UP had worked to diversify crops and to reduce the use of a particular variety of rice. The burning of paddy straw from non-basmati crops was a prime concern for them. In a statement, CAQM said, “Crop diversification and moving away from the Pusa-44 variety with short duration, high-yielding varieties are all part of the framework and action plan for control of stubble burning in these states.”

According to

data

from the three states, paddy cultivation is down by around 1.3 million tonnes in Punjab, from 20.05 million tonnes in 2020 to 18.7 million tonnes in 2021; by 0.8 million tonnes in Haryana, from 7.6 million tonnes in 2020 to 6.8 million tonnes this year; and by 0.1 million tonnes from 0.8 million tonnes in 2020 to 0.7 million tonnes in 2021 in the eight NCR districts of UP.

The total quantity of straw generated by three states was 28.4 million tonnes in 2020. It is expected to reduce to 26.2 million tonnes this year. “The decrease in non-basmati variety is expected to be even higher. Paddy straw generation specifically from the non-basmati variety of crops is expected to decrease from 17.8 million tonnes in 2020 to 16.1 million tonnes in 2021 in Punjab and from 3.5 million tonnes in 2020 to 2.9 million tonnes in Haryana this year,” said CAQM.

As part of the straw management, the bio-decomposer developed by Indian Agricultural Research Institute and tried out in Delhi last year with good results will be sprayed over six lakh acres in UP, one lakh acres in Haryana and 7,413 acres in Punjab. The compound leads to quicker and natural decomposition of the straw remnants, with the additional advantage of fertilising the field.

CAQM had earlier said the detailed action plans had been formulated based on a framework made by it for each state and directions have been issued for strict implementation of these plans in the individual states.