Haryana Pushes for a Stubble-Burning-Free State

Haryana Chief Secretary TVSN Prasad has urged senior officials to intensify efforts to eliminate stubble burning, which deteriorates air quality and public health. He directed the formation of committees to monitor and prevent such incidents, engage farmers for responsible crop residue management, and promote the use of Crop Residue Management machinery.

Haryana Chief Secretary TVSN Prasad on Tuesday urged senior officials to take decisive action towards making Haryana a stubble-burning-free state.

In a strong reaffirmation of the Haryana Government's commitment to combat stubble burning and its detrimental effects on air quality and public health, Chief Secretary Prasad urged Deputy Commissioners to take decisive action towards making Haryana a stubble-burning-free state, said an official statement here.

Prasad was holding a virtual meeting with divisional commissioners, deputy commissioners, and the superintendents of police from several districts, including Fatehabad, Jind, Kaithal, Ambala, Sirsa, Kurukshetra, Karnal, Hisar, Sonipat, and Yamunanagar.

Prasad directed the formation of a four-member committee at the block level, comprising a sub-divisional magistrate, a tehsildar, and an agriculture development officer, to identify hotspots and implement necessary measures to prevent stubble-burning incidents. The committee is required to submit a daily report to the Monitoring and Coordination Department by 5 pm, the statement said.

I will personally monitor the situation every single day, said the Chief Secretary, emphasizing that not a single case of stubble burning will be tolerated. He said those officers who performed well in preventing the paddy straw burning would be duly honoured.

The Chief Secretary highlighted the urgent need to raise awareness among farmers about the detrimental effects of burning paddy straw. He directed the Deputy Commissioners to engage with farmers and inform them about the incentive scheme aimed at encouraging responsible crop residue management.

The top official also stressed the importance of conducting night patrols to monitor and prevent incidents of paddy straw burning. Besides, he also asked them to rope in the 'arhtiyas' (commission agents) to motivate farmers against burning paddy straw.

Prasad reiterated the Haryana government's unwavering commitment to combat stubble burning and its harmful effects on air quality and public health. The chief secretary also stressed the government's commitment to optimizing the use of Crop Residue Management (CRM) machinery. These machines, available at Custom Hiring Centres (CHCs), are being fully utilized for in-situ and ex-situ stubble management practices, reducing the need for burning, he said.

Additionally, a robust ecosystem is being developed to ensure the continuous utilization of paddy straw, providing farmers with alternative options that are both environmentally friendly and economically viable, he noted.

It was informed in the meeting by the officials that in the ongoing agricultural cycle of 2024, the area under paddy cultivation in Haryana has expanded to 15.73 lakh hectares. This increase has resulted in a significant rise in paddy straw generation for basmati and non-basmati varieties.

The basmati paddy straw generation has reached 4.06 million tonnes in 2024. Similarly, non-Basmati paddy straw production has risen to 4.04 million tonnes. The combined total of paddy straw generated in Haryana is now 8.10 million tonnes, according to the statement.

To address the environmental impact of paddy straw burning and promote its industrial use, Haryana has concentrated on various ex-situ utilization methods. For 2024, a total of 2.54 million tonnes of paddy straw has been allocated for industrial usage across different sectors, it added.

The key areas of ex-situ utilization include industrial boilers and furnaces, which have consumed 1.03 million tonnes of straw, and biomass-based power generation, which has utilized 0.83 million tonnes. Compressed biogas (CBG) plants have also started using paddy straw with an application of 0.1 million tonnes, while 2G bio-ethanol plants have utilized 0.2 million tonnes. Co-firing in thermal power plants (TPPs) accounted for 0.28 million tonnes, and brick kilns and miscellaneous industries used 0.10 million tonnes, it noted.