Bathinda: Punjab reported 283 farm fire cases on Saturday, bringing the total count to 9,326 for the current season. This was the highest number of daily cases among five states reporting crop residue burning. Ferozepur emerged as the worst-affected district with 891 cases of crop residue burning until May 16, followed by Bathinda (737), Moga (726), Tarn Taran (711), Amritsar (692), and Sangrur (673).
Legal Actions Intensify
Authorities continue to take legal measures against farmers involved in stubble burning. These include registration of FIRs, marking red entries in land records, and imposing environmental compensation. As per the Punjab Pollution Control Board's action taken report dashboard, 731 FIRs have been filed under Section 223 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (disobedience to order duly promulgated by a public servant) by the evening of May 15. Moga district recorded the highest number of FIRs at 187, followed by Amritsar (154), Sangrur (71), Mansa (60), Patiala (59), Fazilka (51), Barnala (45), Kapurthala (36), Gurdaspur (30), Bathinda (15), Faridkot (13), Jalandhar (4), Muktsar (3), Pathankot (2), and Ludhiana (1).
Additionally, 780 red entries have been made in land records, with 13 added on May 15 alone. Environmental compensation totaling Rs 91.54 lakh has been imposed in 1,950 cases of farm fires, of which Rs 5.55 lakh has been recovered. Warning or show-cause notices have been issued to 130 nodal or supervisory officers.
Farm Fires in Other States
On Saturday, Haryana reported 26 farm fires, Madhya Pradesh 155, and Uttar Pradesh 79. The total number of farm fire cases across the season so far stands at 64,955. Of these, Madhya Pradesh accounts for 37,017 cases (approximately 57% of the total). According to the Consortium for Research on Agroecosystem Monitoring and Modeling From Space (CREAMS), Madhya Pradesh has contributed nearly 50% of crop residue burning cases over the last five years. Between 2022 and May 16, 2026, out of 263,494 cases, 131,703 were from Madhya Pradesh, followed by Uttar Pradesh (61,202), Punjab (57,303), Haryana (13,107), and Delhi (179).
District-Wise Breakdown
Videsha district in Madhya Pradesh recorded the maximum 4,287 burning cases. Across the country, 100 districts in Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Punjab, and Haryana reported over 100 burning cases each until May 16. During the paddy harvesting in the 2025 kharif season, Madhya Pradesh again topped the list with 17,067 stubble burning cases, followed by Uttar Pradesh (7,290) and Punjab (5,114).
Season Totals by State
- Madhya Pradesh: 37,017 cases
- Uttar Pradesh: 15,211 cases
- Punjab: 9,326 cases
- Haryana: 3,338 cases
- Delhi: 63 cases
- Total: 64,955 cases
The data underscores the persistent challenge of stubble burning in the region, with legal and environmental measures ongoing to curb the practice.
