UP govt claims 46% drop in stubble burning; Pilibhit admn books 158 farmers

Even as stubble burning cases continued to be a cause for concern in seven districts of western UP, the Pilibhit administration booked 158 farmers so far, becoming the only district in the region to take such action.

While the air quality in at least nine UP cities crossed the severe level, a state government official claimed stubble burning cases decreased by 46% as compared to the last year.

So far, 488 notices were issued in seven west UP districts and 130 farmers were slapped with a total penalty of Rs 3.30lakh.

In the backdrop of the Supreme Court summoning the chief secretaries of three states, including UP, on November 6, the government said 18, 706 crop residue control machines were distributed to the farmers in 2018-19. The centre released Rs. 14.8 million to the state to deal with the problem, said a government official.

Director, agriculture, Soraj Singh said, “This year, less than 1500 cases of stubble burning were reported against over 2400 cases last year. The decrease is almost 46%.”

He added, “The major focus is on sensitising farmers and providing an alternative to them. We have set up over 1500 hiring centres, distributed machinery and utilised funds allotted by the centre.”

As per the latest report shared by the state with the centre, Barabanki issued notices as well as challans to 12 farmers and recovered Rs 35,000 as fine. Shahjahanpur penalised 29 farmers and collected Rs 23,000 from only nine of them.

The administration in Lakhimpur issued notices to 20 farmers, Shamli to 20 farmers, Bareilly to 63 farmers and Auraiya to seven farmers.

A report from Gorakhpur said 20 farmers from Maharajganj district were fined between Rs 1500 and Rs 5000 for burning stubble in their fields after harvesting crops , officials said on Monday.

The action was taken on the directive of divisional commissioner Jayant Narlikar, who held a meeting with officials and directed them to ensure that farmers did not burn stubble or agriculture waste. The step is meant to avoid further pollution in the region .

ACTING TOUGH

The Pilibhit administration registered 158 FIRs against farmers and issued 337 notices for stubble burning. The district administration slapped 62 farmers with a total fine Rs 1.55lakh but could not recover even a single penny.

A police official said burning crop residue was a crime under Section 188 of the Indian Penal Code and under the Air and Pollution Control Act of 1981. But the Pilibhit administration filed the case under Section 435 (mischief by fire or explosive substance with intent to cause damage amounting to Rs 10 to agricultural produce), which had a maximum sentence of seven years.

(With inputs from Abdul Jadid in Gorakhpur)