Punjab speaker vows Rs 1 lakh for not burning straw

To discourage stubble burning in his Assembly segment, Punjab Speaker Kultar Singh Sandhwan on Sunday announced that he will give Rs 1 lakh to every village panchayat where farmers shun the practice. This amount will be given from his discretionary quota, said an official statement here on Sunday.

Sandhwan, an AAP MLA, represents the Kotkapura Assembly constituency. Sandhwan said the burning of paddy stubble has a harmful impact on the environment along with the loss of fertility of the land. He said according the principles of the Gurbani, people of Punjab love nature the most. "As people getting aware about the harmful effects of stubble burning, they are abandoning this trend," he said, according to a statement.

He said the day is not far when people of the state will completely abandon the practice. Sandhwan had last week honoured people who did not burn paddy stubble. "It was a unique initiative of its kind. In this ceremony, 18 farmers from Faridkot district, 13 from Moga, 10 from Sangrur, one from Rupnagar, 10 from Gurdaspur and seven from Ludhiana and Barnala were honoured," the statement said. He also appealed to farmers to plant more trees to protect the environment.