Chandigarh: Punjab reported more than 400 fresh farm fires on Sunday, taking the count of such cases in the state this season to 8,404, according to remote sensing data.

The Punjab Remote Sensing Centre put the number of new stubble-burning incidents at 404, with Ferozepur accounting for 74 cases, the highest in the state, followed by Bathinda with 70, Muktsar with 56, Moga with 45 and Faridkot with 30.

On the same day in 2022 and 2023, the state reported 966 and 1,150 active farm fire events respectively, the data showed.

From September 15 to November 17, Punjab has seen 8,404 stubble-burning incidents, registering a 75 per cent dip in crop residue burnings over the corresponding period last year.

The state saw 47,788 and 33,082 farm fires during the same period in 2022 and 2023, respectively.

Stubble burning in Punjab and Haryana after harvesting the paddy crop in October and November is often blamed for the rise in air pollution in Delhi.

As the window for the Rabi crop wheat is very short after the paddy harvest, some farmers set their fields on fire to quickly clear the crop residue and sow the next crop.

The state recorded 49,922 fire events in 2022, 71,304 in 2021, 76,590 in 2020, 55,210 in 2019 and 50,590 in 2018. 

With PTI Inputs