Delhi’s Air Remains Toxic Despite Reduced Farm Fires; Discover the Reasons

Farmers in Punjab and Haryana are resorting to burning stubble at night in an attempt to avoid detection by satellites and local officials who are working tirelessly to control farm fires that have been polluting the air in Delhi NCR.

According to official data, the number of farm fires has reduced this year. From September 15 to November 7, approximately 21,000 farm fires were reported in Punjab, which is a 30% decrease compared to the same period last year.

However, when considering the number of paddy farmers, the numbers do not match up. For example, in Ludhiana, Punjab, over 56,000 farmers harvested paddy, but less than 1,000 farm fires were reported. This suggests that many farm fire incidents are going undetected.

This discrepancy may be due to the fact that the daily count of farm fires has to be updated by 8 pm. Aware of this loophole, farmers are setting fire to their fields after this time.

In Haryana, the Haryana Space Applications Centre uses satellite imaging to detect farm fires. However, this imaging is not conducted round the clock and is carried out at 12-hour intervals, potentially allowing some fires to go unnoticed.

Reports suggest that some farmers in Haryana believe that burning crop residue after sunset helps them evade detection by satellites. They argue that satellite imaging relies on temperature to detect farm fires, and the drop in temperature at night may prevent the satellite from identifying the fires.

Jaswant Singh, director for agriculture and farmers’ welfare in Punjab, refutes this claim and states that satellite imagery does detect farm fire incidents at night.

Undetected farm fires create a mismatch in the data, which is critical as government authorities rely on this information to develop effective strategies.

The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), which governs both Punjab and Delhi, has stated that there has been a significant decrease in farm fire incidents in Punjab and blames vehicle emissions in BJP-ruled Uttar Pradesh and Haryana for Delhi’s poor air quality.

In response, the BJP accuses Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal of turning the national capital into a “city of smoke.”

With Delhi’s air quality index remaining in the ‘severe’ category for several days, the Supreme Court has urged the governments of Delhi, Punjab, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh, and Rajasthan to urgently discuss with the central government how to stop farm fires.

The court emphasizes that this issue should not become a political battle and emphasizes that the deteriorating air quality is endangering people’s health.