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Farmers blamed but

who is the real culprit? ENVIRONMENT

45 per cent of crop area. An analysis of the income potential of the bio-mass undermined the profitability for some
the economic well being of this catego- and probably it is out of sheer igno- of the entities.
ry of farmers reveals that it is difficult rance that instead of earning an extra The sources in Haryana govern-
to organise even two square meals for buck by selling the stubble they end ment apprised that the cost of biomass
a family of four with such a small land- up paying price in terms of penalty for for a farmer is about Rs 300 an acre.
holding size. burning the stubble. There is no dedicated market for sale
The Government of India has ear- Talking to Tehelka, Nambi Appa- and purchase of bio-mass. So farmers
marked funds to the tune of Rs 1152 durai, Director, (Climate Resilence find it difficult to dispose off. Out of
cr to provide agro-machine and farm Practice) World Resources Institute about 70 lakh tonne of bio mass, only 5
equipment to manage the stubble in (WRI India) told that with the help of lakh tonne is utilized, rest is the burden
an eco-friendly manner. But those new innovative technologies, the rich on farmers. The large farmers can af-
planning at the top ignore the fact that biomass can be converted into many ford the machines but those who have
existence of hierarchy in the villages products like cardboard, animal feed, limited means resort to burning. The
plays a roadblock in the implementa- packing material and of course, fuel for government for instance, provides ma-
tion. For any kind of government aid power generation. chine for wheat sowing ‘Happy Seed-
and support, the marginal and small He added that National Policy on ers’ at concession but that needs a trac-
small cultivators remain on the pe- Crop Residue Management 2014-15 tor with higher horse power and this
riphery. They are the last one to avail has not been effectively implemented. makes the benefit useless for the small
such facility. The lack of information landholders. The lacunae in policy im-
makes them vulnerable to bad deci- plementation has made many targeted
sion making and instead of waiting for The urban India looks solutions a grain on exchequer.
the assistance from agriculture depart- Use of state-of-the-art technology is
ment, they clear the field in a hurry, at the iisue of stubble a must to make bio mass based power
The presence of visible pollutants triggers a national debate on measures needed to many times by burning the residue, burning only at macro generation viable, says S P S Bakshi,
plant head for Haryana at Sukhbir Agro
oblivious of the fact that this causes
conserve our environment but only for a few weeks, reports komal amit gera more damage to their own health than level. By doing so, Energy Limited. He told that they were
to the environment. using Denmark patented technology
hen smog engulfs human lives, during the past decade and parts of Uttar Pradesh in the wake Noted agriculture economist, Prof. unfortunately, we look which has higher fixed cost but is prof-
the National Capital has unequivocally put the lifestyles in of harvest of kharif crops and need to M.S.Swaminathan has recommended at only the tip of the itable in the long run. The company is
Region of New Delhi a fast trajectory. Concurrently, the in- clear the farms for rabi crops. to add economic value to the stubble running an 18 Mw biomass based pow-
during the harvesting trusion of science and technology in There is a plethora of reports on as this will not only curtail the envi- iceberg. Even after 72 er generation plant in district Ferozpur
W season of kharif crops, personal and social lives of masses in farmers being penalised for burning of ronmental distress but also revive the years of independence, in Punjab, another of similar capacity
we all wake up to save the environ - the absence of senitization for impact stubble to clear the crop residue in their income of the poor farmers. Myanmar is under test-run in Punjab. Two pro-
ment. The presence of visible pollut- of material progress on natural endow- farms. Though agriculture does play a is taking advantage of the scientific col- we have failed to fix jects of 15 Mw each are underway in
ants (though the invisible toxic pollut- ments has pushed us in a precarious role in aggravating the smoke in the air laboration with MSSRF (M S Swamina- our ailing agri sector Haryana.
ants remain in the air round the year) situation. but farmers are not educated, empow- than Research Foundation) Chennai in Farmers earn about Rs 1.30 per kilo-
triggers a national debate on measures During the past few weeks, lot of ered and resourceful enough to think of fruitfully utilizing the agri waste. As a gram by selling the biomass, he added.
needed to conserve our environment. hue and cry has been made on the farm alternatives for stubble management. part of the Indo-Mynmar Friendship We need to work in the direction of It is high time we contemplate over
Ironically, the issue of environmental fires emanating from Punjab, Haryana In an era of digitisation and prolif- project, funded by the Ministry of Ex- spreading awareness among farm- the sustainability of giving cash re-
degradation captures the attention eration of information technology, the ternal Affairs, Government of India, ers about the policies framed for their wards to farmers for not nor burning
only for a few weeks. Once the smog gap between large and small farmers Mynmar has put up a Rice Bio Park in benefits. stubble and subsidies on machinery
is moderated, the entire discourse on Taking cognizance of has been widening. With the chang- technical collaboration with MSSRF, Though 4th generation technology for crop residue management. When
causes, consequences and remedies the current scenario, ing social milieu, agriculture, specially Chennai. solutions are available but in case of bio our warehouses are overflowing with
to safeguard the environment takes a for the marginal and small farmers has According to NASA Earth Obser- mass the lack of uniformity in the dis- grains procured for food distribution
back seat. this is imperative become a herculean task. The urban vatory, India burns approximately 80 tribution of biomass and logistics play a and we the mulling of direct benefit
The term ‘Sustainable Development’ India looks at the iisue of stubble burn- lakh tonne of stubble every year. We crucial role. A good monitoring system transfer instead of food subsidy for
has become a fashionable nomencla- to bring forth the ing, only at a macro level. By doing so, really need to introspect the reason is required for the success of applying PDS (Public Distribution System), shall
ture used by the experts and policy- issue of sustainable unfortunately, we are looking at only for such mismanagement of resources. technology in adding economic cost to we not spend the funds on evolving
makers generously. Taking cognizance the tip of the iceberg. Even after 72 While we pay huge amounts in the the crop residue. market for grains other than wheat
of the current scenario, this is impera- development for the years of independence, we have failed name of concessions and waivers to The states of Punjab and Haryana and rice? This will not only save the
tive to bring forth the issue of sustain- survival of all living to fix the reasons which are ailing our bailout the farmers, why don’t we in- have been making efforts to incorpo- smoke but also the depleting under-
able development for the survival of agriculture sector. The marginal and vest in the available technologies to rate private players to consume bio- ground water table and deteriorating
all living species, albeit much talk and species. Much talks and small farmers in India (who own less safeguard the environment and im- mass for power generation. But there soil health, for which again, govern-
minimal action has put the planet in a minimal action have than 2 hectare of land) account for ap- prove the income of languishing farm- has been a mixed outcome. The high ment spends large amount of funds.
peril. proximately 85 percent of all farmers ing sector? cost of collection of biomass from the
The technological interventions in put the planet in a peril in India, but at the same time own just Most of the farmers are unaware of farm-gate, transportation and storage letters@tehelka.com

26 Tehelka / 11 november 2019 00 www.Tehelka.com