- Takes Suo-moto Notice of Stubble burning alongside the road
- More than 1700 mechanical equipments for in-situ and ex-situ disposal of stubble/crop residue are available in the district.
- Asks Farmers to arrange machinery through i-khet Punjab mobile app from their nearby village
Nawanshahr: Deputy Commissioner Navjot Pal Singh Randhawa made it categorically clear that no leniency would be adopted for cases of stubble or crop residue burning in the district. Taking suo-moto notice of the fire incident in a field near Nai-Majara village on Chandigarh Road yesterday, he instructed the Agriculture and Farmers Welfare Department to take immediate appropriate legal action in this matter.
He said that till last year there were 1571 in-situ (straw disposal in the field) and ex-situ (straw disposal outside the field) machines in the district and this time after the draw of new machines, so far 210 more equipments have been procured. Till now there is an inventory of 1871 such stubble disposal machinery in the district, using which stubble or crop residue can be handled without burning.
DC Randhawa asked the farmers of the district to download the i-khet Punjab app themselves or through their family members using their mobile phones and dispose of stubble by hiring the services of this machinery available in their nearby villages. He said that there are about 40 baler-rakes under ex-situ management in the district, through which straw bales can be made and used for biomass plants or other works. He said that a maximum subsidy of Rs 7.50 lakh is given by the government on one baler-rake (6 lakh on baler and 1.50 lakh on rake).
He further said that there are about 700 super seeders in the district to mix the straw in the field, which works as both a rotavator and a zero drill machine. By using it, farmers can sow wheat in their field along with mixing the straw. A maximum subsidy of Rs 1.05 lakh is given by the government on this machine and approval has been issued to 319 numbers out of 405 machinery applications received this season.
According to the Deputy Commissioner, in addition to this, Happy Seeder is also useful for sowing wheat in standing stubble and beyond this, Smart Seeder, a new single version of Happy Seeder and Super Seeder that came this year, is also being arranged.
He said that even though the government has provided so much machinery on subsidy, the occurrence of fire incidents in the fields shows our irresponsibility towards humanity, flora and fauna and environment. The Deputy Commissioner appealed to the farmers not to burn stubble/crop residue but to cooperate with the district administration in eliminating this evil.
He said that those who set fire the stubble in fields may face difficulties in renewal of passport/driving license/arms license besides being deprived of government benefits. Apart from this, along with the red entry in the land records, the benefits of Prime Minister Kisan Samman Nidhi may also be deprived of. Sarpanch or Nambardar may be removed from their posts in case they are found indulged in stubble burning practice and may face disciplinary action if the offender is government servant.