After the Supreme Court rapped the Punjab government over rampant burning of paddy straw, the administration and law enforcement agencies such as the police got into action, held meetings with sarpanches, and set up flying squads and imposed fines.
Till Now, 245 formal complaints for breaking the law were filed by the police today, marking the start of a campaign against those who burn paddy stubble, a significant cause of pollution across most of the North.
DGP Gaurav Yadav met with SHOs and officials of all ranks earlier in the day to give them instructions on how to put out agricultural fires in accordance with Supreme Court directions. “The SHOs held 1,309 meetings with sarpanches throughout the state to make them aware of the directives.” To prevent stubble burning, up to 638 flying squads made up of law enforcement and civilian personnel were established. 3,836 farmers received fines totaling Rs 88.23 lakh, according to the DGP.
Farmers, who assert that there is a significant scarcity of balers to manage stubble properly, have not taken the police action kindly. A farmer in the Neowal village of Ludhiana named Rajeet Singh suggested that the government send machinery to clean agricultural leftovers. “We don’t commit crimes. He stated, “Small farmers are defenseless, and the government ought to assist us rather than classify us as criminals.
In Ludhiana, there were just 17 documented incidences of burning today. A Rs 6.75 lakh environmental compensation charge was levied even though no formal complaint was filed.
23 Farmer-related FIRs have been filed in the district of Amritsar, according to Gurpartap Singh Sahota, SP, Amritsar Rural. He stated that in accordance with the highest court’s directive, action will be taken against any farmer who was discovered engaging in stubble burning. SHOs, cluster officers, and nodal officials, he claimed, will all be held accountable for infractions in their respective regions.
Police in the Doaba area continued to take proactive measures to put out farm fires. DSPs and SHOs responded to the farm fires that were being lit on fire with firefighting gear in tow, dousing the flames with water hoses and buckets of water. In communities, announcements were also made cautioning farmers not to try to light fields on fire again. The cops arrested each and every farmer who confronted the crews.
For authorities, Shahkot, Phillaur, and Sultanpur Lodhi have been “problem areas.” In the nine tehsils of Jalandhar, Shahkot alone has recorded 254 fire incidences out of 908 total. Eight FIRs have been filed against farmers thus far, and 162 of them have been hit with fines totaling Rs 3.97 lakh.
There have been 851 agricultural fire occurrences in Kapurthala, but only 10 FIRs have been filed thus far. On the other hand, 159 farmers have been fined Rs 4.15 lakh. Only forty fire sites have been located in Nawanshahr, yet 11 FIRs have been filed there. In Hoshiarpur, where there have been 98 recorded fires, just one First Information Report has been filed.