90% Reduction in Stubble Burning Across Punjab and Haryana: Government Reports Progress Amid Delhi's Air Quality Challenges

The Centre announced to Parliament on Monday that stubble burning incidents across Punjab and Haryana have decreased by 90 percent during the 2025 paddy harvesting season when compared to 2022, despite ongoing air pollution issues plaguing Delhi-NCR residents.

Responding to Congress MP Charanjit Singh Channi's inquiry, Union Minister of Environment, Forest and Climate Change Bhupendra Yadav explained that while farm fires contribute episodically to winter pollution, Delhi's air quality is affected by multiple sources including vehicular emissions, industrial activities, construction dust, waste burning, and unfavorable weather patterns.

Despite seasonal air quality deteriorations, Delhi has achieved its best average AQI readings in eight years. The number of days with "good" air quality increased to 200 in 2025, up from 110 in 2016. Simultaneously, days categorized as "very poor" and "severe" have decreased from 71 in 2024 to 50 in 2025.

The reduction in farm fires was attributed to several coordinated initiatives, including the distribution of over 260,000 crop residue management (CRM) machines, providing small farmers with free access to CRM equipment, requiring paddy-straw biomass pellets in brick kilns, and implementing strict measures against officials who fail to control stubble burning.

The Commission for Air Quality Management (CAQM) has instructed the governments of Punjab and Haryana to mandate the use of paddy straw-based biomass pellets or briquettes in all brick kilns outside NCR districts. Officials indicated this policy aims to generate significant demand for crop residue, offering farmers alternatives to burning and helping eliminate open-field stubble burning practices.

This season, thirty-one CPCB flying squads were deployed across hotspot districts in Punjab and Haryana to monitor compliance.

The government reported continuing to conduct regular high-level review meetings to enhance pollution control efforts before winter months arrive.

After a brief improvement on Sunday with an AQI of 269, Delhi's air quality deteriorated again to the "very poor" category as toxic smog enveloped the city, pushing the AQI above 300 on Monday.

Opposition Leader in Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi demanded a comprehensive discussion in Parliament regarding air pollution in the national capital on Friday, questioning Prime Minister Narendra Modi's silence on what he described as a "health emergency."

Gandhi also hosted a discussion with several women at his residence about Delhi's pollution crisis, sharing the video on X and calling for PM Modi's intervention regarding the worsening air quality. "Every mother I meet tells me the same thing: her child is growing up breathing toxic air. They are exhausted, scared and angry. Modi ji, India's children are choking in front of us. How can you stay silent? Why does your government show no urgency, no plan, no accountability?" he asked.