IEP Chandigarh, October 14
Principal Secretary to the Prime Minister of India, Dr. P.K. Mishra, has expressed satisfaction over the steps taken by the Haryana Government to prevent contamination of the air environment in the NCR region. He has also appreciated the incentives being given to farmers to curb stubble burning.
The Principal Secretary to the Prime Minister was presiding over the meeting on the Management of Air Pollution through video conferencing with the Chief Secretaries of Haryana, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, and Punjab today.
He said that Haryana Government has done commendable work toward reducing air pollution in the NCR region. He said that other states should also follow the steps taken by the Haryana Government to make the environment clean in the NCR region.
In the meeting, Chief Secretary, Sh. Sanjeev Kaushal said that Haryana has taken effective steps to prevent stubble burning. Village-level committees have been constituted under the chairmanship of the Deputy Commissioners. These committees are keeping a strict vigil on stubble burning. Last year till date 389 incidents of stubble burning were reported whereas only 102 instances of stubble burning have occurred this year, which indicates a 23 percent drop from the previous year. The state’s administration is making efforts to further reduce it.
The Chief Secretary said that so far 60 percent of paddy had been harvested in the state. The state government has fixed the target of 55 lakh metric tonnes of paddy, out of which 31 lakh metric tonnes of paddy has been procured so far.
He said that the straw management system has been promoted. Under this, committees have been formed by dividing the state into red, yellow, and green categories, in which the officers of the Agriculture Department have been included. An amount of Rs. 1000 per acre is being given to the farmers as an incentive for not burning the stubble. Industries are being connected to PNG clean fuel. Apart from this, a subsidy is being given to promote electric vehicles. The state has also imposed a ban on the production, sale, and use of all types of firecrackers.
