Summary:
Together, these four districts alone accounted for 40% of fire events in the state, up from 29% last year. Time big factor in fuelling farm fires in PunjabLUDHIANA: Stubble-burning in Punjab was higher this year than in 2017, Nasa satellites show, but the real story lies in the detail. “All four districts are in the western Malwa region of the state where kisan unions are strong,” said a state agriculture department official.The unions have been demanding cash compensation of Rs 200 per acre to farmers for not burning stubble. Outside of the four Punjab districts and Sirsa in Haryana, all places reported a reduction in crop-burning, as per data released by ATARI.Among areas that see heavy stubble-burning, Kapurthala (down 53%), Ludhiana (46%), Jalandhar (37%) and Karnal (45%) saw impressive reduction in fires. We are sure we will reduce stubble-burning significantly next year,” Sidhu said.Meanwhile, this year’s burning season is expected to end in a few days, with just around 10-15% of rice harvesting yet to be done, officials said..