Haryana farmers booked, fined for stubble burning

Chandigarh, Nov 7 (IANS) Taking a tough stance against stubble burning which was leading to health and environmental concerns, authorities in Haryana have booked over 1,000 farmers and imposed a fine of nearly Rs 12 lakh on them, a minister said on Tuesday.

Haryana Environment Minister Vipul Goyal said that in view of the orders given by the Supreme Court and the National Green Tribunal, the Environment Department has taken a tough stance on cases of stubble burning.

"Given the air pollution from stubble burning, the Pollution Control Board has started a statewide campaign. Under this till now, 1,011 farmers have been identified for burning stubble across the state. The department has filed police cases as well as imposed fines on them," he said.

He said cases have been filed against 227 farmers who were caught by the Pollution Control Board and 454 farmers have been slapped fine of over Rs 11.89 lakh.

"Not only paddy, burning the residue of any crop is harmful to the environment. It is not only deteriorating the environment, but also reducing the fertility of the lands of farmers," the minister said.

Area in the northern region, comprising Punjab, Haryana, ChandigarhAand Delhi have been engulfed by smog with the onset of winter with farmers in agrarian states openly burning paddy stubble despite strict orders from both state governments against the practice.