CAQM empowers 5 States/UTs to prosecute officials over inaction on stubble burning

New Delhi, Oct 12 (UNI) The Commission for Air Quality Management (CAQM) on Saturday authorised the district authorities in Punjab, Haryana, NCR areas of Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh, and the National Capital Territory (NCT) of Delhi to file complaints or prosecute officials for inaction on stubble burning enforcement.

The commission also directed districts administrations and state governments to intensify vigilance against paddy stubble burning during harvest season, the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change said in a statement.

The CAQM has deputed 26 Central teams to the hotspot districts in Punjab and Haryana to maintain close liaison with the district level authorities in their endeavours to optimize the utilisation of all available resources/ means for various in situ/ ex situ management applications, besides setting up a “Paddy Stubble Management Cell” at Chandigarh, for coordinated and continuous monitoring of the field level actions.

“Paddy stubble burning is a matter of grave concern due to its impact on air quality in NCR and the Commission has been deliberating upon the issue in consultation with the concerned stakeholders including with the State Governments of Punjab, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh and Rajasthan, GNCTD, State Pollution Control Boards of NCR States, Punjab and Delhi Pollution Control Committee (DPCC) and knowledge institutions,” the Ministry said.

Based on field experiences and learnings from 2021, 2022, and 2023, the action plans for Punjab, Haryana, and the NCR districts of Uttar Pradesh were updated for 2024, focusing on the prevention and control of paddy stubble burning during the harvest season, with the goal of eliminating this unsustainable agricultural practice.

However, a total of 267 and 187 paddy residue burning incidents were reported from Punjab and Haryana, respectively, during the period from 15th September to 9th October 2024.

Given the current situation and with the aim of ensuring effective implementation of the action plans at the field level, the CAQM, in exercise of the powers vested in it under Section 14 of the CAQM Act 2021, has authorised the Deputy Commissioners, District Collectors, and District Magistrates in Punjab, Haryana, NCR areas of Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh, and in the NCT of Delhi to file complaints or prosecute before the jurisdictional judicial magistrate in cases of inaction by officials, including nodal officers, supervisory officers, and Station House Officers responsible for enforcing the elimination of paddy stubble burning within their respective jurisdictions.

Leave a Reply