Theairwe breathe

CHANDIGARH/LUDHIANA: As the cloud cover that militated against an effective mapping of stubble burning cases in the region cleared, Punjab on Monday reported the highest number of farm fires this season – 5,953 in a single day – according to data from the Punjab Agriculture University (PAU).

To make matters worse, officials and experts expected the incidents of paddy straw burning to continue till at least mid-november because the harvest season is far from over. The Supreme Court has, however, asked Punjab, Haryana and Uttar Pradesh governments to immediately stop stubble burning.

Before Monday, the highest number of stubble burning incidents - 3,135 - was reported on October 30. With Monday’s count, the total number of farm fires reported from the state was 31,267, according to PAU, which reports farm fire incidents based on satellite images every day.

In 2018, a total of 50,450 farm fires were reported during paddy harvest season between October 15 and November 15.

Anil Sood, a senior scientist at the Punjab Remote Sensing Centre, PAU, said the number of paddy residue burning could increase in the coming days, continuing the trend that started on Diwali, October 28, when 3,105 incidents were reported.

“The number is not unusual,” Sood said, adding that every year there is a spurt in farm fires in the first week of November as the farmers are in a hurry to clear the farms for wheat sowing, while the moisture level in the soil is high