Stubble trouble is back in Mohali district

MOHALI: Challenging the ‘Tandarust Punjab’ campaign, burning of paddy stubble is back in Mohali district as smoke could be seen emanating from fields in Derabassi, Gharuan and Mullanpur areas. The smoke screen has returned, covering highways and other connecting roads running along such fields and becoming an environment hazard.

Despite the fact that in the past one year the administration had booked 154 under Pollution Control Act for burning paddy stubble, the menace had not been curtailed. The ardent efforts of the Mohali administration to curb it in the district appears to have borne no fruit.

Mohali deputy commissioner-cum-district magistrate Gurpreet Kaur Sapra had issued ban orders against burning of paddy stubble in Mohali. The orders have been issued under Section 144 of the CrPc. But still stubble burning issue remains untamed in Mohali with complaints pouring in from various parts of the district. The most prone to the menace are Majri block, Mullanpur fields and fields in Derabassi and Zirakpur.

In the past two days reports of burning of paddy straw have been received from Janetpur, Jawaharpur, Baroli and Paragpur villages in Derabassi. The farmers after burning paddy straw ploughed the fields to hide the ashes.

According to a PPCB report released last year after Diwali, paddy straw burning recorded about three times increase in the number of incidents on Diwali day at 1,188 as compared to an average of 400 incidents per day in pre-Diwali days. A spokesman of the PPCB indicated that level of respirable suspended particulate matter (RSPM) in the air this year had been higher than last year because of low level of air dispersion owing to very low wind velocity and early harvesting of paddy crop.

The reasons for the increase in air ambient quality level is purely due to burning of paddy straw in Mohali district, said PPCB executive engineer Lovleen Dubey.