CROP BURNING KILLING DELHI AIR
DEADLY Burning of crop residue in nearby states leads to a blanket of smoke over Delhi
Illegal crop burning in Uttar Pradesh, Haryana and Punjab pushes up carbon dioxide levels by 70% in November, leaving Delhi-NCR gasping for breath
LUDHIANA/LUCKNOW: Every year, as winter sets in, a thick blanket of smog engulfs the northern states, including Delhi. Much of it is caused by smoke from agricultural fires — burning of crop residue — in Punjab, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh and Rajasthan.
Apart from harming the fertility of soil, stubble burning produces particulate matter and toxic gases such as carbon dioxide, carbon monoxide, nitrogen oxide, sulphur oxide and methane. The soot and carbon mix with vehicular emission in cities such as Delhi, leading to a deadly cocktail that cause serious respiratory problems and heart diseases.
In winter, the pollutants stay in the atmosphere for a longer time because of the fall in temperature and change in wind patterns. The worst hit are children and the elderly.
Punjab has 28 lakh hectares under wheat and paddy cultivation, which along with grain, produces 47.2 million tonnes of straw each year. Despite a ban imposed on paddy burning in 2005, all the straw — 95% of paddy and 25% of wheat — is burnt after every harvest.
From mid-October to November-end, the carbon dioxide levels in the air shoot up by 70%. The concentration of carbon monoxide and nitrogen dioxide rises by 7% and 2.1%, respectively, triggering respiratory and heart problems.
UP has banned this practice on the National Green Tribunal’s (NGT) threeyear-old order. The state cabinet passed a proposal to this effect on Tuesday and a notification is likely early next week.
“Asked by the NGT to follow states such as Haryana, Punjab and Rajasthan that recently banned burning of crop remains in the fields, we put a ban on this practice, “said Sanjiv Saran, principal secretary, forest and environment, UP.
But the department had not prescribed any penalty for violators. “We will discourage farmers from burning crop remains, which they will be advised to mix with soil,” Saran said.
The Punjab Pollution Control Board (PPCB) also recently issued a notification banning the burning of stubble across the state.
Burning of stubble affects soil quality. “The soil loses 6-7 kg nitrogen per tonne, 1-1.7 kg phosphorus, 14-25 kg potassium and 1.2-1.5 kg sulphur due to stubble burning. In total, the loss of nutrients is around 1.5 lakh tonnes per annum. This leads to an additional expenditure of `150 crore per year to replenish the soil,” said Dr S S Kukal, a senior soil scientist at Punjab Agricultural University, Ludhiana, who conducting a statewide study in 2010. With state inputs