The Centre has doubled the penalty imposed on farmers for burning stubble. Commission for Air Quality Management issued the notification on Thursday which raised the fines to Rs 30,000 from Rs 15,000 for farmers with more than 5 acres of land area.
Fines for the farmers having 2–5 acres of land have been increased from Rs 5,000 to Rs 10,000 and those for the farmers owning less than 2 acres of land have been increased to Rs 5,000 from the earlier Rs 2,500. The order issued under Commission for Air Quality Management in National Capital Region and Adjoining Areas (Imposition, Collection and Utilization of Environmental Compensation for Stubble Burning) Amendment Rules, 2024 is required to be implemented by the respective State Governments with immediate effect.
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The Commission has authorised all the nodal officers appointed by the governments of Delhi, Punjab, Haryana, Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh to impose and collect fines from farmers causing air pollution by stubble burning, as per the revised rates.
Farmers Criticise the Move
Farmers in Punjab have criticised the order calling it "anti-farmer".
Kisan Mazdoor Morcha leader Sarwan Singh Pandher told PTI that only 30 per cent crop residue management machinery has been provided to farmers, while Bharti Kisan Union (Ekta Ugrahan) general secretary Sukhdev Singh Kokrikalan pointed out that the farmers with the machines did not burn stubble at all.
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"Even if they raise it by 10 times, we will not pay it," Kokrikalan said.
Another farmer told PTI that small and poor farmers cannot afford to buy machines and urged the government to ensure their reach to every farmer.
Farmers have been seeking subsidies to manage paddy stubble.
The state of Punjab alone reported 5,041 farm fires between September 15 and November 6, which is a decline of more than 70 percent as compared to corresponding period last year. Punjab recorded a total of 36,663 cases of stubble burning in 2023, 49,922 in 2022 and 71,304 in 2021.
Air quality in the NCR region has been deteriorating increasingly with the AQI reaching 382 at 10pm on Thursday, according to the Central Pollution Control Board.
(With inputs from PTI)
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