When asked for Rs 1200 crore, Center said no need… Center gave blow to Punjab plan to ban stubble burning

New Delhi : After Diwali, Delhi’s air is continuously getting worse. In Punjab, cases of stubble burning are also coming up continuously. The season of paddy harvesting and stubble burning in the fields is half over, but the BJP-led central government and the Aam Aadmi Party-led Punjab government are battling over who will bear the cost of encouraging farmers to stop burning stubble. . A hearing in this matter is to be held in the Supreme Court this week.

The Union Agriculture Ministry is believed to have rejected the idea of ​​Punjab citing the example of the BJP-led Haryana government along with existing government funding measures. It is believed that even the AAP ruled Delhi government has not accepted this idea.

Punjab government had given the proposal

Recently on October 19, the Punjab government has proposed an incentive scheme to the Center under which farmers will be given Rs 2,500 per acre to meet the operational costs involved in using crop residue management machinery, tractor hiring, manpower etc. Will be given Rs. It is expected that this financial incentive will encourage farmers not to burn paddy straw.

Demand of Rs 1200 crore

There is a hitch in the funding pattern proposed by the Punjab government for a Rs 2,000 crore scheme to cover 32 lakh hectares of paddy growing area in the state. The state has written to the Union Agriculture Ministry suggesting that the cost of the scheme be shared among three parties – Punjab, the air pollution-hit Delhi government and the Government of India. It has suggested that Punjab and Delhi pay Rs 400 crore each while the Center provides the bulk of Rs 1,200 crore for the scheme.

Agriculture Ministry put forth its point in the Supreme Court

The Agriculture Ministry, in its latest application to the Supreme Court, has explained how the Haryana government has provided incentives from its ‘own budget resources’ to ban stubble burning and bring about crop diversification. The ministry acknowledged that the Punjab government should also consider providing similar incentives to farmers from its ‘own budget resources’.

It further said that if the State Government had been more effective in implementing the action under the Central Government’s subsidy scheme for Crop Residue Management (CRM) and Sub-Mission on Agricultural Mechanization (SMAM) in addition to awareness campaigns among farmers, then this There is no need for any kind of proposal.