With stubble burning turning Delhi into a gas chamber, Union Agriculture Minister Narendra Singh Tomar, on Friday, said proper management of paddy stubble was the collective responsibility of all concerned states for preventing pollution.
The state governments of Punjab, Haryana, UP and Delhi were provided more than Rs 3,000 crore for stubble management by the Centre. Punjab was allocated the maximum fund of about Rs 14,500 crores, while Haryana got Rs 900 crore, UP Rs 713 crore and Delhi Rs six crore, he said, adding that out of this, funds to the tune of about Rs 1,000 crore were still left with the states, including Rs 491 crore with Punjab alone.
The minister was addressing a workshop organised by the Indian Agricultural Research Institute (IARI), Pusa in New Delhi for efficient management of paddy stubble.
The minister said that more important than a political discussion on paddy straw was to discuss its management and how to get rid of it. He said the problem of stubble burning was serious and on this issue levelling allegations and counter-allegations was not justified.
”Be it the Central or state governments or farmers, everyone has the same objective that agriculture should flourish in the country and there is prosperity for farmers,” Tomar said.
Stubble burning, he said, caused harm to the environment as well as to the people and, therefore, a way should be found to deal with it.