FARM FIRES

Tuesday's fire events

Bathinda Mansa Barnala Ferozepur

Patiala Ludhiana

Jalandhar, Patiala, Rupnagar, Ludhiana, and Amritsar. Ozone was audited as the main pollutant at Khanna. According to VK Garg, professor of environmental science and technology at Bathinda-based Central University of Punjab, the presence of airborne PM 2.5 is a health hazard and its downward trend could be seen as a relief. “Crop residue burning, fuel emission, and burning of waste are among the key contributors to PM 2.5. A couple of showers in the next few days will help settle the pollutants to make the air more breathable and come as a relief to the people having respiratory related ailments,” he added. 141 farm fires reported Punjab on Tuesday recorded 141 cases of stubble burning, taking the total count of farm fire incidents to 45,464 this kharif season, the state remote sensing centre’s data showed.

Twenty-seven cases were reported each from Bathinda and Mansa districts, followed by Barnala (20), Ferozepur (11), Patiala (9), and Ludhiana (8). Malerkotla, Fatehgarh Sahib and Sangrur saw seven cases each; Moga and Muktsar registered four, while Amritsar, Fazilka, Faridkot, Gurdaspur, Mohali, SBS Nagar and Tarn Taran contributed to the remaining incidents.