Bathinda: Punjab reported 37 farm fire cases on Wednesday, indicating a reduction in daily occurrences even as legal proceedings against violators continued statewide. With these latest incidents, the cumulative number of crop residue burning cases this season has reached 9,568.
District-Wise Breakdown
Ferozepur remained the most affected district, recording 906 cases. Bathinda and Moga each reported 740 cases, followed by Tarn Taran with 712 and Amritsar with 698.
Legal Actions Taken
According to the Punjab Pollution Control Board's action dashboard, 738 FIRs have been registered under Section 223 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita as of May 18. Moga accounted for the highest number of FIRs at 194, followed by Amritsar (154), Sangrur (71), and Mansa (60).
Authorities have also made 846 red entries in land records and imposed environmental compensation totaling Rs 1 crore across 2,126 farm fire cases. Of this amount, Rs 7.15 lakh has been recovered so far. Additionally, warning and showcause notices have been issued to 130 nodal and supervisory officers.
National Context
Across India, Madhya Pradesh reported 196 farm fire cases on Wednesday, Uttar Pradesh 90, and Haryana one. According to data from the Consortium for Research on Agroecosystem Monitoring and Modeling from Space (CREAMS), the country has logged 66,318 crop residue burning incidents this season. This includes 37,848 in Madhya Pradesh, 15,482 in Uttar Pradesh, 9,568 in Punjab, and 3,356 in Haryana.
