Page 191 - CW E-Magazine (28-11-2023)

Special Report

Ineffi cient supply chain management leading cause

of stubble burning

urning of paddy straw (stubble) The attempt to N.S. VENKATARAMAN
in the last quarter of the year in alleviate severe pol-
BPunjab, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh lution by resorting to Director
Nandini Consultancy Centre
and a few other States have been a recur- artifi cial rain or cloud Chennai
ring issue for several years now, causing seeding is an experi- Email: nsvenkatchennai@gmail.com
high level of pollution in these States as mental endeavour,
well as in the capital city of New Delhi. with no evidence that
As a result, New Delhi has gained noto- it would be successful in the non-mon- chase of Crop Residue Management
riety as one of the most polluted cities soon season. Though cloud seeding has (CRM) machines, including surface
in the world – a humiliating condition been attempted in several regions in ‘super-seeder’ machines, which uproot
faced by India in the global eye. the past, it has largely been a wasteful the crop residue.
exercise.
A careful examination of the issues It is reported that Punjab has more
and possible solution for stubble burn- These schemes seem to have been than 10-lakh farming families and they
ing highlight the fact that there is introduced by the Delhi Government to have land holdings of 2.5-acres or less
absolutely no justifi cation for this buy peace with critics. and cannot afford to buy the machines.
problem. It is there only due to lack of These machines are also available to
forward planning and ineffi cient The solutions farmers at a rent of around Rs. 1,800
supply chain management. The solutions are known, but the per acre. However, they are not avail-
problems arise due to lack of initiative able in adequate numbers, given the
In Punjab alone, between 18-mt and dynamism in implementation of large extent of paddy farm cultivation,
and 20-mt of paddy straw is generated the solutions by the governments con- and in any case, small farmers feel they
every year and around 15-mt are burnt cerned. cannot afford to spend so much money
in open fi elds in a few weeks, in order as rent for using the machinery. Fur-
to clear the land for subsequent sowing The solutions are all based on alter- ther, these machines are of no use for
of wheat or other crops. A somewhat nate use of paddy straw and are to use the rest of the year, and buying them do
similar fi gure could be seen if all the it: not make economic sense.
other concerned States are put together.  As organic manure for organic
farming; It is for this reason that a large sec-
There are plenty of things to be  To produce briquettes/pellets for tion of farmers are not using the CRMs

gained by avoiding the burning of use as fuel; and and are simply burning the paddy straw.
stubble. Profi t is one of them.  To produce ethanol by fermentation
technology. Organic manure – much in need
Cosmetic steps With focus on promoting organic
Instead of focusing on fi nding Why is stubble burnt? farming, there is large and unmet de-
long-term solutions to solve the issue, Paddy straw has to be cut and re- mand for organic manure in the country.
keeping in view the constraints and moved after harvesting and the fi elds
opportunities, only cosmetic measures cleared in just 2-3 weeks, to allow for Biomass can be converted into
have been adopted from time to time, the subsequently planting of wheat manure through a process called com-
especially when the pollution levels or other crops. Cutting and removing posting, which is a natural decom-
reach peak levels. These include the the straw manually is costly and time- posing process, where biomass, such
‘odd-even’ scheme for taking out cars, consuming, but machines can speed up as paddy straw, are broken down by
declaring holiday for schools, asking the process. microorganisms into a nutrient-rich
people to work from home, suggesting compost/organic manure.
shift in cropping patterns, attempting to In fact, governments have been
get artifi cial rain, etc. providing subsidies to farmers for pur- The question to be asked is: Why

Chemical Weekly November 28, 2023 191

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