NASA images show early stubble burning in Punjab

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Satellite images from space agency National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) have shown that the farmers have started burning crop residue in parts of Punjab and Haryana.

The images suggest an early start to the practice of stubble burning, which is a major contributor to extreme levels of air pollution that choke much of the region, including Delhi, in the run up to the winter season, reported Hindustan Times.

According to the report, NASA’s Fire Information for Resource Management System (FIRMS) shows a progressive increase in detection of fire in areas that typically have farmlands.

There were five to seven fires spotted through satellite monitoring in Amritsar district in Punjab between September 13 and September 16, said the report citing data provided by Pawan Gupta, a research scientist at the Goddard Earth Sciences Technology and Research (GESTAR), Universities Space Research Association.

The number of fires started rising and reached 26 on September 18. It further increased to 50 fires on September 19. On September 20, 62 fires were observed only in the Amritsar district, said the report.

Besides Amritsar, stubble burning was reported in other districts in Punjab, including Tarn Taran, Firozpur, and parts of Kapurthala, Mansa and Jalandhar. These regions showed at least two fires every day, as per the report.

The stubble burning is called a sign of ‘early varieties’ of crops being harvested, senior official of Punjab Pollution Control Board (PPCB) told the publication.

PPCB is hoping that the number of stubble burning cases will be less this year, the official was quoted as saying. “Our teams are alert but these fires are yet to start,” added the official.

The period between October 15 and November 15 is considered critical as a maximum number of stubble burning incidents takes place in this span in Punjab and adjoining states and is one of the main reasons for the alarming spike in pollution in Delhi-NCR. Despite a ban on stubble burning in Punjab and Haryana, farmers continue to defy it.