1,081 stubble fire cases in Haryana this April against 885 the last time

HISAR: The Haryana Space Application Centre (HARSAC) at the Chaudhary Charan Singh Haryana Agriculture University (CCSHAU) has recorded 1,081 major wheat stubble burning cases in the state from April 1 to April 30 this year against the 885 cases for the same period last year.

Moreover, 184 cases were reported on May 1 alone. The details of the stubble burning cases in the state have been sent to concerned officials of the pollution department and deputy commissioners (DCS) of the districts for appropriate action.

Providing details of the stubble burning, chief scientist, HARSAC, Ramesh Kumar Hooda said, “Last year, the HARSAC noted 4,300 cases of stubble burning in the state. We had started our satellite survey from April 1 to April 30, 2017. The total cases from April 1 to 30 in 2017 were 885, but this time, they have increased to 1,081.”

According to the district-wise report of fire points from April 1 to April 30, 2018, Jhajjar (173); Sonepat (146); Rohtak (124); Jine (118) and Panipat (96) are the top five in the state.

“Also, according to the latest fire alert from April 1 to May 1, 2018, total 1,265 cases have been reported in the state. This number was 1,287 for the same period last year, showing no substantiate change,” he added.

However, the number of wheat stubble burning cases is less than those reported during paddy harvesting season in 2017 (13,000 active fire points), according to the record of HARSAC.

“We have developed a mobile application through which, administration officials and the pollution control board officials get an SMS with a link attached

that shows a map with the exact location of the place of stubble burning. We have also updated the app and now it also shows the shortest route to the area, along with the name of the field owner. Our senior scientist Nidhi Kundu uploaded the cadastral map into our web pages,” Hooda told HT.

Hooda further said that the application can be downloaded from the website hrsdi.in by follow the download link mobile application. An .apk file will be download into the computer system, which can be installed in

mobile phones and accessed by switching on the location of the phone. HARSAC collects data from the US and Indian satellite MODIS and Suomi. The satellite gives a clear picture of the area where stubble is being burnt and after collecting the data, HARSAC releases an SMS to the enrolled persons for action.

Senior scientist Nidhi Kundu said, “Most of the stubble burning cases came to light on April 30, with 249 active fire points received in a single day. There were total 60 cases of active fire

points in Jhajjar, 40 in Jind, 36 in Rohtak, 25 in Panipat and 22 in Sonepat.”

FOUR FIRE POINTS IN KALESAR FOREST IN YAMUNANAGAR

Hooda, while giving information about stubble burning, said that the HARSAC also noticed four active fire points in Kalesar forest of Yamunanagar. “As soon as we came to know, we informed the matter to additional principal chief secretary for action,” he said.