Punjab Farmers Are Burning Stubble In Punjab – Free PDF Download

• Why farmers in Punjab are burning wheat stubble when rate of dry fodder is so high?
• ‘Tudi’, which is made from wheat stubble, is considered to be the best dry fodder for cattle because of its nutritional value.
• So when wheat yield is down this year, the rate of tudi is very high and farmers can earn huge profit by selling it.
• But despite that 3,895 field fires, including 820 such incidents on Friday (April 29), have been reported so far from April 1 to April 29 in Punjab.

What Is Stubble Burning ?

• Stubble (parali) burning is a method of removing paddy crop residues from the field to sow the next crop.
• Stubble burning is a process of setting on fire the straw stubble, left after the harvesting of grains, like paddy, wheat, etc.
• It is usually required in areas that use the combined harvesting method which leaves crop residue behind.

What is the rate of tudi?

• The rate of tudi was Rs 950 to Rs 1100 per quintal before wheat harvesting, which started in April, as farmers sold last year’s stored fodder then.
• Now when the season of tudi began post wheat harvesting the rates have not gone down as it is still being sold at the rate of Rs 400 to Rs 800 per quintal in different parts of the state.
• Whereas in neighbouring states such as Rajasthan, the rate of tudi is Rs 950 per quintal. During tudi season its rates used to remain between Rs 200 and Rs.300/quintal.

Why are the rates of tudi so high?

• Experts said that in December last year when reports came that the area under wheat coverage had gone down to some extent in several states in the 2021-22 Rabi sowing season, several big traders started storing dry fodder and the rates also started shooting up.
• Besides wheat yield was also hit by high temperatures in March which resulted into shrivelled grain and less heavier wheat straw.
• Farmers getting 15% to 20% less production of tudi , which is much in demand because of its nutritional value, and this led to the high rates even during the season.

Output of tudi in the state

• Punjab, which gives around 35 lakh hectares under wheat coverage, produces around 20 million tonnes in normal cropping season, but this time it would be around 14 million tonnes only which could be worth Rs 14,000 crores if the rate reaches Rs 1,000 per quintal.
• In Punjab if not 100% then 99.9% farmers make tudi whether they keep cattle or not and sell it.

Tudi income : A Case Study

• A farmer, who is getting two trollies of fodder per acre, has to pay Rs 1,200 per trolly to the fodder maker, who uses his machinery and tractor to make fodder, and
• if the rate of fodder increases up to Rs 1,000 to Rs 1,100 per quintal (the chances of which are strong as traders have already started storing it in a big way) then farmer can sell for Rs 16,000 to Rs 17,000 tudi per acre and can earn Rs 13,500 to Rs 14,500 per acre after paying to the fodder maker.

Then why farmers are setting wheat fields on fire post harvesting?

• Actually they are not burning the stubble but the upper portion of the roots because after making fodder small few centimetres of the upper part of the roots are left and farmer even set that part on fire which can be avoided easily without any damage to the next crop.
• Farmers are not realising that they are burning the soil friendly insects, organic matter, and causing considerable loss of nitrogen, DAP, Potassium besides generating huge amount of carbon dioxide , carbon monoxide, black carbon, which all create environment pollution.
• It also affects the productivity of the crops and fertility of the soil.

Can it be stopped?

• Experts said that a little push from the government and change of farmer’s mind set can bring the wheat field burning to ‘zero’ in the state because this is not as major problem as paddy stubble, which is not used for fodder making.

View point of farmers

• Farmers who burn the roots said that they burn because they need clean field for the growing next crop, which is mainly paddy, and burning converts the left over into ash and then they plough the field once which cost them Rs 1000 to Rs 1200 per acre and then they transplant paddy nursery after puddling of field.
• They said that if they don’t burn it then this left over will float over the flooded field prepared for transplanting paddy nursery and the left over will hit the delicate paddy nursery when windy air will blow and causes damage to the crop.
• Also they said that without burning more operations of field ploughing are required and every operation costs Rs 1,000 to Rs 1200 which is not affordable by majority farmers.

What do the farmers do if they don’t set their fields on fire after making fodder?

• Farmers who do not burn the leftover of the roots after making fodder said that they plough the field once or twice after fodder making.
• And during paddy sowing in June, they transplant paddy nursery after three days of puddling of the field because in those three days, the leftover roots of wheat get settled in the soil and when nursery is transplanted, it neither float not hit nursery.
• Also those who burn upper part of the roots face problem at the time of paddy sowing because the remains of the roots come out during puddling and they start floating because of their light weight on the flooded fields of paddy.
• To save nursery, farmers are required to clear those by engaging labour which is both time consuming and costly.

Question:
The Rabi crops are sown in which months?

1. March-April
2. June-July
3. October-November
4. January-February

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