Punjab’s stubble struggle: one-third of crop residue management machines not operational

Despite the simplification successful the fig of operational machines, experts judge that the existent fleet is capable to negociate the stubble generated crossed 32 lakh hectares of paddy cultivation successful Punjab. The Government has devised a Rs 500-crore enactment program to equip farmers with machinery, to amended them against burning and instrumentality strategies. As galore arsenic 163 lawsuit hiringcentres person been established to facilitate tiny and marginal farmers successful accessing CRM machinery.

Distribution of harvest residue absorption machines

Government statistic amusement that a important fig of machines person been distributed since 2018, with 27,747 machines distributed successful 2018–19, 23,068 successful 2019–20, 25,811 successful 2020–21, 13,796 successful 2021–22, 27,214 successful 2022–23, and 13,215 successful 2023–24. Until past year, the Government distributed 1,30,851 machines nether the CRM, and this twelvemonth it has projected to administer astir 20,000 much machines, of which 6,000 person already been distributed.

Subsidies scope from 50 per cent for idiosyncratic farmers to 80 per cent for husbandman groups, panchayats, and cooperative societies, making these machines much accessible to the farming community.

According to the Government, arsenic of till past year, 70,954 machines were fixed to idiosyncratic farmers, 46,109 machines were fixed to husbandman groups, panchayats, and husbandman shaper organisations and 13,788 machines were provided to superior agriculture cooperative societies.

Farm fires and stubble-burning country from 2018 to 2023

Since 2018, Punjab has recorded 50,590 workplace occurrence incidents successful 2018, 55,210 successful 2019, 76,929 successful 2020, 71,159 successful 2021, 49,922 successful 2022, and 36,629 successful 2023. The country of paddy burned successful 2018 was 17.81 lakh hectares retired of the full paddy country of implicit 3 cardinal hectares. In 2019, 18.54 lakh hectares were burned; successful 2020, 17.55 lakh hectares were burned; successful 2021, 15.64 lakh hectares were burned; successful 2022, 15.43 lakh hectares were burned, which accounted for much than 50 per cent of the full paddy area. However, successful 2023, the burned country accrued to 19 lakh hectares.

This means that portion the fig of stubble-burning cases has decreased, the existent burned country of paddy roseate by 26 per cent compared to 2022. This highlights a important problem: contempt the availability of machines, farmers are either compelled to burnstubble oregon are deliberately doing so.

Shift towards precocious technologies

There has been a displacement from older technologies similar the Happy Seeder to much businesslike models similar the Super Seeder and the Smart Seeder. The Happy Seeder, wide distributed during the archetypal signifier of the CRM scheme, is present mostly outdated. In contrast, the Super Seeder, which cuts and uproots the paddy straw, sows wheat seeds, and deposits the straw implicit the sown country successful a azygous cognition leaving the tract with a cleanable appearance, and the Smart Seeder, which incorporates wheat stubble into the world astatine the rows wherever wheat is sown, and remaining stubble near astatine the aboveground for mulching, person go the preferred choices owed to their precocious features and efficiency.

Projected stubble absorption for 2024

Punjab is expected to make astir 20 cardinal tonnes of stubble this season. The authorities aims to negociate 12.70 cardinal tonnes done in-situ methods, wherever stubble is incorporated into the soil. The remaining six cardinal tonnes volition beryllium managed ex-situ, with the straw being collected and utilised successful powerfulness plants, state plants, and boilers. Around 55,000 Super Seeders and Smart Seeders are disposable to screen astir 80 per cent of the paddy area, aligning with the Government’s people of managing 65 per cent of the stubble in-situ wrong a 20-day model from November 1 to 20, the perfect clip for wheat sowing.

Cost implications for farmers

In-situ stubble absorption is much costly for farmers compared to ex-situ methods, wherever farmers are either not required to wage thing to wide their fields from stubble oregon they adjacent get immoderate token wealth to supply stubble to the stubble-collecting companies. In in-situ renting of dense tractors to run machines similar the Super Seeder tin outgo farmers Rs 2,200-2,500 per acre, a important origin for those reluctant to follow these practices. However, agriculture officials reason that this outgo is worthy it, arsenic in-situ absorption increases the output of the pursuing wheat harvest by preserving ungraded nutrients.

Government initiatives and challenges

Speaking to The Indian Express, Jagdish Singh, who is associated manager (engineering wing) successful the agriculture section and besides the authorities nodal serviceman of the CRM, said, “Under the harvest residue absorption (CRM) scheme, astir 1.30 lakh subsidised machines had been distributed by past year, with an further 20,000 machines acceptable to beryllium distributed this year, 6,000 of which person already been provided to farmers.”

Jagdish Singh acknowledged that galore machines, particularly the heavier ones, had either go outdated oregon redundant. “Furthermore, machines person a constricted lifespan and immoderate machines cannot enactment beyond 3-4 years due to the fact that of their dense usage. However, determination are inactive capable machines disposable for stubble management, and efforts are being made to scope each idiosyncratic husbandman to discourage stubbleburning, adjacent connected tiny plots,” helium said.

Singh said the farmers are provided with interaction details truthful they tin petition the indispensable machines astatine immoderate time. According to him, 7 hotspot districts—Bathinda, Moga, Ferozepur, Barnala, Sangrur, Mansa, and Faridkot—have been supplied with further machines, and galore consciousness camps person been organised to amended farmers connected the value of stopping stubble burning to support the situation and the wellness of their soil.

Singh noted that much farmers were becoming alert of the benefits of non-burning practices and adopting them.
Agriculture section officials person appealed to farmers that they should, earlier proceeding with the baling process, guarantee they person a program connected wherever their baled stubble volition beryllium used. They besides urged farmers not to pain immoderate stubble near successful the corners oregon on the edges aft baling.