874 FIRs registered against farmers for burning stubble in Punjab

The Punjab Police have registered 874 first information reports (FIRs) and imposed a penalty of ₹10.55 lakh on 397 farmers for burning stubble in the past 20 days. Besides, red entries have also been made in revenue records of 394 farmers. Red entries marked in revenue records makes it difficult for farmers to sell, mortgage their land or avail loans against it.

In Punjab, nearly 20% of the paddy crop has been harvested and the state has recorded 1,510 cases of farm fires since September 15, when the state’s remote sensing centre started recording. The cases were 1,764 in the corresponding period last year.

Despite efforts to curb farm fires, authorities anticipate that the number of incidents this season may not see a drastic reduction compared to previous years, in part due to a controversy regarding procurement that has seen farmers go on protest.