Up in smoke

Crop residue burning in Punjab and Haryana is blamed for poor air quality in the National Capital Region. But a new study points out that the impact can spread as far as central and southern states. In New Burning Fields (16-31 May, 2017) Down To Earth noted, "Crop residue burning is not new to India. According to a 2014 study by the IARI, in 2008-09 the country generated 620 million tonnes of crop residue, of which close to 16 per cent was burnt on farms."