Several Root Causes Drive Farmers to Burn Stubble

Hyderabad:There are several reasons why farmers in Telangana are increasingly resorting to setting fire to paddy and cotton stubble. The primary reason appears to be the cost, time and effort involved to either clear their fields or to put the stubble to other purposes, including using it as mulch for the next crop.

Farmers, in addition to the ease of getting rid of the stubble by burning, also believe that any pests that remain from the previous crop will also be destroyed in the fire. While this may be so, this also kills the bacteria that create nutrients needed by plants, earthworms, and every other beneficial organism that is in the soil, according to Dr T. Prabhakar Reddy, programme coordinator of Krishi Vigyan Kendra at Palem in Nagarkurnool district.

The burden of stubble that farmers have to deal with has been growing not just on account of more acreage under crops but also because of reliance on mechanical harvesting, particularly of paddy.

“In the past, harvesting was done manually, which meant that the crop was cut from nearly the ground level. And the straw, after threshing, was used as cattle feed. But farmers no longer have the cattle numbers they used to have earlier. And mechanised harvesters cut from the top, where the grain is, leaving more of the plant standing,” Prof. Ch. Damodar Raju, principal scientist (rice), and head of Institute of Rice Research at Prof Jayashankar Agriculture University, said.

Yet another issue that confronts the farmers is the short break between the two crop seasons. With Kharif ending in October-November, they barely have a month or so before making preparations for the Rabi season that begins in November or December.

Something similar also happens between rabi and kharif. So, the fastest way to clear the fields and prepare for rabi for another round of paddy is to burn the crop residue, Ravi Kanneganti of Rythu Swarajya Vedika said.