MSP stick to check stubble burning? SMALL RELIEF

Concerned over a host of petitions against stubble burning in Punjab, Haryana and Uttar Pradesh causing air pollution in Delhi and surrounding areas, the Supreme Court on Tuesday decided to examine a suggestion to withhold part of the Minimum Support Price and release it only after verifying that the farmers didn't burn stubble.

Solicitor General Tushar Mehta objected, saying that "tinkering with the MSP may not be in the interest of the farmers as they may sell their paddy to others instead of bringing it to the government agencies for the MSP, defeating the very purpose."

CJI SA Bobde, heading a 3judge Bench, had his own doubts: "Who is going to supervise and verify if a farmer has indulged in stubble burning or not?

The Bench posted the matter for next hearing on October 16, after the Centre sought time to file its response. It also ordered the

Meanwhile, the Punjab has told an SCmandated authority that custom hiring centres in the state won’t charge any rental from small farmers for machinery to manage stubble.

presence of the chief secretaries of Punjab, UP, Haryana, and Delhi then.

Advocate Charanpal Singh Bagri, representing farmers, objected to the suggestion of withholding MSP. He said that on November 5, 2019, the SC had ordered that compensation should be paid to those who don’t burn farm residue.

He said this relief is hard to come by. Even those not burning the stubble will have to wait for getting the full MSP, he added.

When the CJI wanted to know "whether the smoke from stubble burning kill Coronavirus," senior advocate Vikas Singh said there are science reports that the "Corona pandemic will get aggravated from the pollution caused by the stubble warning."