Patiala: Punjab has recorded 4,657 stubble-burning incidents despite continued administrative action and monitoring to curb the practice, with 1,442 FIRs registered and environmental compensation of Rs 7.28 crore imposed, according to the latest report of the Punjab Pollution Control Board (PPCB).
The report stated that of the total environmental penalties imposed, Rs 3.36 crore has been recovered so far.
According to the data, harvesting has been completed across 93.70 per cent of the state’s total paddy area of 32.87 lakh hectares. Administrative and monitoring teams have continued inspections of agricultural fields to identify stubble-burning incidents and verify cases on the ground.
So far, inspections have been conducted at 3,845 fields where fires were reported, while physical verification has confirmed evidence of stubble burning at 1,675 locations, as of November 9.
In Patiala district, 299 stubble-burning incidents have been recorded. Of these, field inspections have been carried out in 195 cases, while physical evidence of burning has been confirmed at 122 locations.
The district has registered 86 FIRs in connection with stubble burning and imposed environmental penalties amounting to Rs 43.50 lakh, of which Rs 15 lakh has been recovered. Additionally, red entries have been made in land records in 35 cases, while 185 warning notices have been issued.
A district-wise analysis shows that Tarn Taran has recorded the highest number of stubble-burning incidents in the state, with 659 cases, followed by Ferozepur with 621 cases.
Sangrur has reported 508 incidents, while Bathinda has recorded 412 cases, highlighting the continuing challenge faced by authorities in these districts.
In terms of FIRs, Ferozepur has registered 365 cases, while Tarn Taran has recorded 307 FIRs. Sangrur has registered 80 FIRs, whereas Bathinda has reported 19.
The figures indicate that enforcement measures, including field inspections, registration of criminal cases, environmental penalties and warning notices, are continuing across Punjab. However, the persistence of thousands of stubble-burning incidents despite these measures remains a major challenge for the state administration and its efforts to ensure effective crop residue management.
The PPCB data also highlights the scale of the monitoring exercise, with thousands of field inspections undertaken and financial penalties imposed to discourage farmers from burning crop residue.
(IANS)
