The Delhi government on Thursday said it will launch a drive on October 13 for spraying the Pusa bio-decomposer in paddy fields for free to check stubble burning, which contributes to high levels of air pollution in the city in winters.
The campaign will be launched in Tigipur village in Narela, and 13 teams have been formed for spraying the bio-decomposer, Development Minister Gopal Rai said in a statement.
Prepared by scientists at the Indian Agricultural Research Institute (IARI) here, the bio-decomposer is a microbial solution that can turn paddy straw into manure in 15-20 days.
This year, the Delhi government will spray the bio-decomposer in more than 5,000 acres of basmati and non-basmati paddy fields, Rai said. “Stubble burning contributes to the problem of pollution in the winter season. In such a situation, appropriate steps have to be taken to resolve this problem in time,” he said.
The government has been spraying the bio-decomposer in paddy fields for a few years now to prevent stubble burning.
“Paddy is cultivated only in some parts of Delhi. Through our policies, we have ensured that there is no pollution from stubble burning in Delhi. Last year too, free sprinkling of the bio-decomposer was done by the government,” Rai said.
The problem faced by the farmers is that the gap between harvesting paddy crops and sowing wheat is very short. Therefore, the government is starting the drive to spray the bio-decomposer early, he said.
Campaigns are also being run to create awareness about the bio-decomposer spraying drive among farmers in Delhi, the minister said.
