The annual toxic haze over North India has again placed the spotlight on the country’s multi-faceted, yet struggling, strategy to stop farmers from burning paddy stubble. India’s “stubble playbook” combines technology subsidies, biological solutions, energy mandates, and financial penalties in a mix of incentives and enforcement.
Here are the core components of the government’s approach and the current state of implementation:
1. Flagship Central Schemes (In-Situ Management)
The central strategy is to encourage in-situ (in-field) incorporation of stubble back into the soil:
• Crop Residue Management (CRM) Scheme: This scheme provides subsidies for essential farm machinery such as the Happy Seeder, Super Seeder, mulchers, and rotavators.
• It also mandates the use of Super Straw Management System (Super SMS) attachments on combine harvesters to chop straw for reincorporation.
• States use funds to set up Custom Hiring Centres (CHCs), allowing farmers to rent the costly equipment.
• Sub-Mission on Agricultural Mechanisation (SMAM): This umbrella program ensures the 60:40 cost-sharing between the Centre and states (100% for UTs) and requires states to submit composite action plans.
• National Policy for Management of Crop Residues: This policy provides the framework for both in-situ incorporation and ex-situ (off-field) utilization.
2. The Biological Route
• Pusa Decomposer: Developed by the Indian Agricultural Research Institute (IARI), this microbial spray accelerates the decomposition of stubble within 20–25 days.
• Delhi has been utilizing it on a large scale (around 5,000 acres per season), with Punjab and Haryana also running parallel pilots.
• A new wettable formulation was introduced in 2024, though experts caution that its effectiveness is still dependent on adequate moisture and tillage.
3. From Straw to Energy (Ex-Situ Utilization)
A significant policy shift is treating crop residue as a valuable feedstock for energy:
• SAMARTH Mission (Power Ministry): This mandates that thermal power plants co-fire a minimum percentage of biomass pellets derived from straw:
• 5% from 2024–25.
• 7% from 2025–26.
• SATAT Scheme: This program encourages the development of Compressed Biogas (CBG) plants to source straw, with public-sector oil companies signing agreements to purchase the resulting biogas.
• Progress: While the intent is clear, progress on both SAMARTH and SATAT has been “patchy,” with many operational plants still in the construction phase, limiting the market for ex-situ straw.
4. State-Level Incentives and Enforcement
States have adopted varied strategies combining penalties with direct and indirect incentives:
• Punjab: Targeted management of 19.3 million tonnes of straw in its 2025 plan. Increased penalties up to ₹30,000 per burning incident. Fines of up to ₹1 lakh for combines operating without the mandated Super SMS attachment.
• Haryana: Strictly enforcing Super SMS use in key districts like Jind. Rolled out a direct cash incentive of ₹1,200 per acre for farmers who manage their straw responsibly.
• Delhi: Continues its free Pusa Decomposer spray campaign across designated fields.
The Delivery Gap
Despite the array of schemes and regulations, the article concludes that the primary challenge is not a lack of policy, but a failure in delivery.
• Farmer Grievance: Farmer unions often cite a 2019 Supreme Court order never implemented at scale that called for a ₹100 per quintal payout to small and marginal farmers who avoid burning. They argue that penalties without compensation are fundamentally unfair.
• Operational Hurdles: For a farmer the decision to burn often comes down to immediate practical factors: whether they can get a subsidized working seeder on time find a reliable buyer for their straw or if a promised cash incentive actually lands in their bank account.
Ultimately regulators like the Commission for Air Quality Management (CAQM) issue annual directions and flying squads for enforcement but bridging the gap between policy mandates and on-the-ground availability remains the key to extinguishing the stubble fires.