Some Easy Techniques as a Solution to Stubble Burning
India produces quite 550 million tonnes of crop residue per annum, which the very best producers of this crop residue are Punjab, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh. The illegal burning of crop stubble contributes a severe part within the trending pollution issue in Delhi. According to the report of SAFAR, the contribution of stubble burning in Delhi’s pollution rose to 46 per cent with farm fires continuing in Punjab and Haryana. The air in Delhi includes 20 times more polluting particles than the planet Health Organization recommends. The health and economic costs to tackle this are estimated to be $30 billion during a single season which is 1.5 times the Indian allow education and health.
Indian Farmers farming practices for harvesting wheat and rice are highly mechanized. These practices leave an outsized amount of scattered, root-bound paddy straw within the field post the harvest. Rice straw, which has silica content in massive amounts, is taken into account to be poor feed; it’s no other local economic use. Farmers have only 14- 20 days between harvesting paddy and planting the subsequent crop. Since that’s not enough time to clear and prepare the fields, and removing the rice straw left within the area, so that they burn the paddy residue (stubble), it ‘sits a standard residue management practice among farmers in India. The time constraint and therefore, the labour-intensive nature of removing the rice straw have led to the mechanization of harvesting, which has, in turn, aggravated the paddy residue management issue.
Why Stubble Burning?
Stubble (parali) burning is the act of setting fire to crop residue in order to remove them from the field so that the next crop can be sowed.
- To plant next winter crop (Rabi crop), farmers in Punjab and Haryana have to move in an extremely short interval & just in case they are late, because of short winters now days, they might face considerable losses. Hence, burning is the fastest and cheapest way to get rid of the stubble.
- If stubble is left in the field, agricultural pests like termites might attack the new crop.
- The uncertain economic condition of farmers does not permit them to use costly mechanised methods to remove the stubble.
Causes of the Stubble Burning
Technology: The problem arises because of the use of mechanized harvesting which leaves few inches of stubble in the fields.
- Formerly, this excess crop was utilized by the farmers for cooking, in the form of hay to keep their pet animals warm or even as an extra insulation for their houses.
- But, now the stubble use for such purposes has become outdated.
Adverse Impact of Laws: Implementation of the Punjab Preservation of Subsoil Water Act (2009) made the time period of stubble burning coincident with the onset of winter in the Northern India.
- Late transplanting of paddy in the Kharif season to avoid water loss as directed by PPSW Act (2009) had left farmers with less time between harvesting and preparing their fields for the upcoming crops and therefore farmers started resorting to the burning of stubble.
- High Silica Content: Rice straw is considered useless as fodder in the case of non-basmati rice, due to its high silica content.
Effects of Stubble Burning
- Soil Fertility
- Heat Penetration
Crop residue management aims to realize profitable and sustainable agriculture and subsequently targets at improving livelihoods of the farmers via these small and easy techniques and farm implement.
Happy seeder is a tractor-mounted implement which cuts and lifts the residue of rice plants wheat seeds into the bare soil and deposits the paddy straw over the plant area as mulch.
With the assistance of Happy Seeder farmers did not have to till the land to plant their wheat. Instead, the farmers can save their expenses on ploughing rotavator and land preparation. It is recommended to sow wheat crops after rice harvesting, with the assistance of happy seeders farmers can get longer for development as happy seeders do many activities at an equivalent time. Keeping rice residue changes in tillage practices reduce evapotranspiration losses, which could reduce irrigation water use in wheat additionally to buffering soil moisture, soil temperature, which successively offers more crop yield as compared with traditional practices—considering Economic, Environmental, Agronomic benefits of happy seeder government also taking the initiative and giving 50 to 80 per cent subsidy on the happy seeder. New Holland Happy Seeder, Dasmesh Happy Seeder, Fielding Happy Seeder are some options that you buy with government subsidy.
Mulcher may be a tractor operated post-harvest implement which helps evident remains of the harvested plants. Mulcher does three operations at just one occasion, i.e. cutting, chopping and mixing with soil clear the sector which prepares the land for the subsequent sowing season. It works on the surface of the earth hence doesn’t harm the ground, which helps to enhance the fertility of the soil. In Mulcher Knives are joined on the roller which rotates vertically and shreds crop residue and weeds, cutting height are often adjusted by two wheels at the rear of the machine. Mulching operation reduces weed growth also as water requirements of the crop is additionally less. Mahindra Mulcher, Maschio Mulcher, Shaktiman Mulcher are mostly used brands by Indian Farmers.
Zero Till drill:
With the increase within the adoption of zero-tillage and bed planting technologies in several areas of India, zero-till seed-cum-fertilizer drill has become a valuable and vital agricultural farm equipment for the farmers. It helps farmers to seed a crop directly into the cultivated field just after the harvest of the previous crop with the smallest amount of disturbance of the soil. It eliminates or reduces time and energy-intensive conventional tillage operations reducing the cultivation costs and risk of Phalaris minor in wheat aside from improving crop yields and farmers profits. Farmers can use Dasmesh Zero Till Drill, Swan Zero Till, Fielding Zero Till Drill for better results.
Tractor rake is an agricultural equipment wont to collect, turn or spread the other sort of previously cut forage. This tractor equipment can work as long as installed on any agricultural tractor as long as given 3-point universal coupling and hydraulic lift. Its functioning is obtained for the effect of its dragging by the machine towing it. For using Hay Rake tractors must be given protective roll-bar or ROPS approved cabins, as per Standards for safety purpose. Farmers from Punjab are using New Holland Rake for creating suitable quality Balers.
Baling crop residues into round or rectangular bales are the foremost important step in handling crop residue for other applications, i.e. Biofuel, crop fodder and staple for paper manufacturing. With the utilization of balers, it becomes more convenient for manual and mechanical handling of hay. Tractor Baler turns crop residue into bales which may be used as animal feeding also as this will be stored for harder dry days easily so that farmers even have a backup plan for his or her dairying. It also gives farmers extra income by selling these bales to power plants. The farmer can use New Holland Balers for Better results.
Conservation agriculture may be a new term for farmers. It ‘ll take a while to vary their thought process on how they use the equipment and apply water and weedicides. And it’ll require information, training and incentives to motivate farmers to undertake new technology. Also, public extension services and private institutions will suit the Happy Seeder and make it available at large scales.