Vibha Sharma
New Delhi, October 19
Claiming that the stubble-burning incidents had started increasing rapidly, especially in Punjab, the Centre today accused the state government of not taking adequate steps to prevent these.
“The state had been provided sufficient equipment, farm machinery and funds under the crop residue management (CRM) scheme yet there has not been sufficient progress in implementation of the action plan,” according to an official statement issued following an inter-ministerial meeting with states on the CRM issue.
The Punjab Chief Secretary was asked to control “the increasing rate of farm fires in Amritsar and ensure a 50 per cent reduction in comparison to last year”, according to the statement.
Haryana situation better
If effective steps are taken in Amritsar and Tarn Taran districts, half the job will be done because these two districts are facing maximum problem. The status of paddy straw management in Haryana is significantly better. –Narendra Singh Tomar, Agriculture Minister
Speaking at the meeting, Environment Minister Bhupender Yadav said, “the Punjab Government has not been able to take coordinated actions to contain farm fires in the state.”
Animal Husbandry and Dairying Minister Parshottam Rupala called for “proactive steps”, especially by Punjab.
Commission for Air Quality Management chairman MM Kutty said Punjab had taken “inadequate” steps in spite of several meetings and efforts by the statutory panel.
The ministers also noted that the Pusa bio-decomposer— a microbial solution which turns stubble into manure in 15-20 days — was being sprayed in a lesser area in Punjab and its application needs to be promoted.
Nine of 23 districts in Punjab and four of 22 districts in Haryana are major contributors of stubble-burning, he said. Speaking at the meeting, Agriculture Minister Narendra Singh Tomar, called for fixing the accountability on collectors in affected districts by respective states.
Meanwhile, Chief Secretary Vijay Kumar Janjua in Chandigarh on Wednesday asked top officials of the state to conduct regular inspections in all districts to take stock of the stubble-burning incidents. He said it was crucial to access the ground situation, therefore, senior IAS officers concerned must visit the respective districts for random checking. Pertinently, the government has appointed 23 senior IAS officers in 23 districts.
