Madhya Pradesh has lagged far behind Punjab and Haryana in the number of stubble burning incidents last week. Data shows that between October 19 and 25, a total of 536 cases of straw burning occurred in Madhya Pradesh. All these data are published by the Indian Agricultural Research Institute (IARI).
During this period, Punjab registered 401 cases, less than Madhya Pradesh. Haryana is faring relatively well with 192 cases reported. Uttar Pradesh and Rajasthan have also reported more cases than Haryana. Uttar Pradesh reported 192 cases and Rajasthan reported 203 cases last week. These figures indicate that the problem of stubble burning is not limited to Punjab and Haryana but also affects other parts of the country.
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Numbers are decreasing in Punjab
Looking at the data from the past five years, there has been a significant reduction in stubble burning in Punjab. There were 16,221 cases of straw burning reported between September 15 and October 25, 2020, while only 1,749 were reported this year. This fact indicates that farmers in Punjab are turning to alternative methods instead of burning stubble.
Meanwhile, there is a worrying trend of stubble burning in Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh. It is worth noting that between September 15 and October 25 this year, a total of 849 cases of straw burning occurred in Uttar Pradesh, which is the highest number since 2020. Meanwhile, the number of stubble burning has decreased in Madhya Pradesh compared to last year, but the numbers are higher compared to 2021 and 2022. During 2021 and 2022, Madhya Pradesh reported only 291 and 210 cases. This number has increased to 1,261 in 2023, and to 869 this year, with a sudden and significant increase in the past five days.
Find out how things are going in Delhi
Cases of stubble burning have also increased in Delhi, with 11 cases reported so far this year, the highest in the past five years. Cases of stubble burning have also come down in Haryana, with only 689 cases reported so far this year as against 1,772 in 2020. Stalk burning has a significant impact on pollution levels in Delhi. Smog from straw contributed to about 15% of Delhi’s pollution in the past two days.
