‘Everyone must shoulder responsibility of preventing environmental contamination’
A workshop on ‘Paddy Straw Management and Action Plans’ commenced at Punjab Agricultural University with the support of Union and state Ministries of Agriculture and Farmers’ Welfare.
Chief guest, KAP Sinha, Additional Chief Secretary, Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers’ Welfare, Punjab, highlighted the significance of farming. He said, “You need a doctor, lawyer, policeman, or preacher once in your life, but thrice every day, you need a farmer.” He acknowledged the desire to eliminate the practice of paddy straw burning and identified obstacles hindering the progress.
These included large amount of paddy residue and the limited timeframe for sowing wheat. To address these challenges, he proposed increasing baler capacity, deploying more machinery in high burning areas, involving cooperative societies to support SC beneficiaries, and replicating successful initiatives.
Stating that everyone must shoulder the responsibility of preventing environmental contamination and sustaining clean air, Dr Satbir Singh Gosal, PAU Vice-Chancellor, cautioned that stubble burning emits toxic pollutants which disperse in the surroundings and eventually affect the air quality and people’s health by forming a thick blanket of smog. Heat generated due to farm fires penetrates into the soil, causing nutrient deficiency as well as loss of useful microbes and moisture, leading to infertile soil and vulnerable crops, he said. He advocated the concept of conservation agriculture, which upcycles paddy straw without producing any waste. He called for synergy among the Department of Agriculture, NGOs, academia, industry and farmers to tackle the menace of paddy straw burning.
Arvind Nautiyal, Member Secretary of the Commission for Air Quality Management, New Delhi, underlined the detrimental effects of air pollution on the environment, climate, and human health. He elaborated that burning one ton of paddy straw not only leads to soil nutrient loss but also negatively affects temperature, pH, moisture, and organic matter.
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