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Stubble-burning threatens to ground aircraft sorties
Jupinderjit Singh
Tribune News Service
ENEMY WITHIN?
A fighter plane requires a minimum visibility of 4 km to take off
But ever since stubble-burning began, visibility has reduced to 2 km
There are days when visibility falls to as low as less than 1 km
In such a situation, pilots at times carry out trainee sorties by risking their life
Bathinda, October 29
After posing a challenge for health and environmental campaigners, stubble burning has become a cause for concern for security officials. The smog resulting out of burning of paddy straw, which is banned by law, has been affecting sorties by fighter aircraft at the Air Force’s Halwara, Adampur and Bhisiana stations.
A defence spokesman said a fighter plane requires a minimum visibility of 4 km to take off. But in the past few days, he said the visibility had reduced to 2 km. “There have been days when the visibility has fallen even less than 1 km. As such, it becomes difficult to carry on with trainee sorties. Though our pilots have trained themselves in flying in such challenging situations too, the exercise is risky,” he said.
The Air Force authorities have taken up the matter with the civil administration for remedial measures, besides spreading awareness among the farmers. The spokesman said the Air Force had now roped in ex-servicemen for a door-to-door campaign in rural areas. “We have convinced many to at least avoid burning stubble on flying days,” he said. The smog has been causing road accidents as well.
Major health hazard
Far away from the Air Force stations, Kulwinder Kaur in Daroli Bhai village near Moga has been cursing the practice. For, her two minor sons have been bedridden for more than a week. “They are unable to breathe properly and have developed sore throat, watery eyes and chest congestion, besides fever. There seems to be no escape from the smoke,” she complained. Dr UP Sidhu, Head of Department (Chest) at Dayanand Medical College and Hospital, Ludhiana, said chest-related infections rise by at least 25 per cent during this season.
“Asthma patients and those suffering from other kinds of allergies are the worst sufferers,” he said.
Causing fiscal loss
On an average, farmers burn an estimated 20 tonnes of straw in a single paddy season. If sold to biomass plants, the straw could have fetched around Rs 400 crore. In Bhagta Bhai ke village, a farmer said he burnt straw despite opposition by his father. “I have to spend Rs 2,000 to Rs 3,000 more per acre to prepare the fields for the next crop if I don’t do so. That is something I can’t just afford.” He said the government should share the expenditure if it wanted to put an end to the practice.
Violators go scot-free
Though the state government has banned stubble burning, it generally has been going soft on violators. An official said nailing farmers was not that easy. “How can a farmer be penalised if he argues someone else set his field afire or it just happened by accident,” he said. The official said a solution had to be brought about through persuasion and not by forceas it may lead to additional problems.
Some plus points too
The recently started biomass power generation plants in Mansa and Muktsar districts have received more paddy straw this year than last year, indicating the trend of selling straw was gaining momentum.
Dr Paramjit Dhat, District Agriculture Officer, Mansa, said the government was selling machines like Happy-seeder, bailer and chopper at about 50 per cent subsidy. “These help farmers in earning revenue from straw, which can be used as fodder, for power generation and for manufacturing paper.” He said with an effective education drive carried out by the administration, nearly 10,000 acres had been saved.
Amit Dhaka, Deputy Commissioner, Mansa, said last year seven bailers were employed in the fields and this year 25 bailers had been put into use. “These are used with cutters and reapers to collect straw in bails for selling it off to bio-mass plants.”
Dinesh Bhardawaj, an assistant manager at a biomass plant in Muktsar, said they had received 50,000 quintals of paddy straw this year as against 15,000 quintals in 2012.
“We buy straw up to Rs 120 per quintal. This becomes a source of additional revenue for farmers,” he said.
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