The district has recorded 27 farm fire incidents between September 15 and November 1, according to Punjab Pollution Control Board (PPCB) data. no FIR has been registered in the district so far While five red entries have been made in revenue records in connection with farm fires.
The chief agriculture officer said Jagraon and Raikot, which had reported a higher number of incidents in previous years, had recorded fewer farm fires this season. A red entry is an adverse remark recorded against a farmer in the land revenue records for stubble burning. As per the state government’s decision, once such an entry is made, the farmer may not be able to secure a loan against the land, mortgage it or sell it. Chief agriculture officer Gurdeep Singh attributed the lower tally to better returns from crop residue, access to machinery and awareness campaigns. “Farmers are finding buyers for paddy straw, which is used as fuel, while subsidised baling machines have made its collection easier. Awareness camps organised across the district have also helped discourage stubble burning,” he added. Baling machines compress leftover paddy straw into bundles, making it easier to transport and use as biomass fuel. This provides farmers with an alternative to burning the residue in their fields.
The latest tally is lower than the 38 incidents reported during the corresponding period last year, when eight FIRs were registered. The current count, however, has risen sharply over the past three days, from eight incidents on October 30 to 16 on October 31 and 27 by November 1. Field teams inspected 12 locations in the district and confirmed stubble burning at six of them, according to official data. Environmental compensation of ₹ 25,000 has been imposed in four instances. These enforcement measures are separate from the 27 incidents recorded in the PPCB tally. Around 2.6 lakh hectares in Ludhiana district are under paddy cultivation, of which 69% has been harvested. Across Punjab, 1,514 farm-fire incidents had been reported by November 1, compared with 2,084 during the corresponding period last year, according to PPCB data.
With paddy harvesting still underway, officials said monitoring and inspections would continue across the district to check further instances of stubble burning.
