Panjab Witnesses 63% Rise in Paddy Stubble Fires Since 2022; Quantitative Study Reveals high PM 2.5 Levels

Subsequent Panjab governments make big projections about containing paddy stubble fires but they do not stop. In fact, they increase. Last week Panjab witnessed 656 farm fire incidents, up by around 63% against the corresponding period of the previous year. This is because the farmers are trapped between the 2009 Panjab Preservation of Subsoil Water Act and the oncoming wheat plantation. The farmers are unable to diversify to other crops because they do not have a legal guarantee on Minimum Support Price (MSP). Meanwhile, a group of international collaborators led by the Research Institute for Humanity and Nature has performed a quantitative study of air pollution in the north-western India region. Observations show high PM2.5 levels in the region – from 60 µg m-3 to 500 µg m-3. However, one study alone cannot establish Panjab's role in air pollution, especially in Delhi. The question that needs to be asked is if the role of other pollutants – firecrackers during Diwali, industry, traffic fumes, cement, traffic, wood fires, garbage disposal – are being studied. In industry, petroleum coke and furnace oil have been banned by the Supreme Court but the government says a complete ban is not feasible. Unless those studies are conducted, there will only be a partial view of the crises.