Farmer held, 9 booked for crop burning in NCR
The farmer was arrested after he was found burning stubble in Dayantpur village in Jewar area of the district, deputy collector Gunja Singh said.
New Delhi: A farmer was arrested and nine others were booked in Gautam Buddh Nagar for allegedly burning crop residue in Greater Noida in violation of the National Green Tribunal guidelines, the district administration said on Saturday.
The farmer was arrested after he was found burning stubble in Dayantpur village in Jewar area of the district, deputy collector Gunja Singh said. On Wednesday, an FIR was filed against six farmers in Ramur Majra village in Dankaur area for burning crop residue in their farms.
The action against farmers comes days after the Supreme Court sternly asked governments of Delhi’s neighbouring states — Uttar Pradesh, Punjab and Haryana — to take steps to stop stubble burning.
People in Noida and Greater Noida can now tip-off the district administration about stubble burning, inappropriate disposal or burning of waste material via Whatsapp and email, and also get rewarded '1,000 for sharing such information, officials said on Saturday.
The information should be sent to the administration within 12 hours of the incident, they said. People can now send pictures, date, location and names of offenders on WhatsApp number 9871428532 or email the information at dmgbnwarroom@gmail.Com, the administration said, adding that the identity of informers would be kept confidential.
“The initiative has been started with immediate effect and aims at checking air and other forms of pollution. There have been reports of burning of waste, stubble and bursting of firecrackers recently amid a high level of pollution in the region. All these activities contribute to pollution,” district magistrate Brajesh Narain Singh said, according to an official statement.
The ban on the operation of coal-based units in the National Capital Region and industries in Delhi that do not use piped natural gas was lifted as the air quality improved on Saturday and is expected to get better in the next two days. At a review meeting of the Central Pollution Control Board-led task force on Saturday, it was also decided that hot mix plants and stone crushers would remain closed in the NCR.
V.K. Soni from the India Meteorological Department said at the meeting that the favourable weather would likely to stay till Monday, following which the AQI might enter the higher end of the “poor” category or lower end of the “very poor” category.
The air quality index in Delhi read 357 at 4 pm on Saturday, over 100 notches less than Friday as strong winds abated the smog lingering over the NCR for the past four days.