Delhi: Bio Decomposer to be sprayed on paddy fields to control pollution

New Delhi: Every year, as the festive season in the months of October and November approaches, a high risk of air pollution looms over the national capital. Spike in Delhi's AQI is a common phenomenon during these months. In a bid to curb the pollution this year, Delhi Development Minister Gopal Rai, on September 20, 222, visited Indian Agricultural Research Institute (Pusa) to inspect the process and production facilities of Bio Decomposer Solution being manufactured there. The solution will be used by the Delhi government to decompose stubble and prevent stubble burning pollution. The solution will be directly purchased from the institute.

Gopal Rai said, "This year, the Delhi Government will spray free bio-decomposer in more than 5,000 acres of fields for stubble decomposition. Forms are being filled by farmers and if needed, it will be sprayed on more farmlands as and when needed. 21 teams have been formed for the spraying process, which includes officials of the Agriculture Department and Revenue Department. This year, Pusa Institute is providing the Delhi government with its own bio-decomposer solution entirely. The bio-decomposer will be sprayed for free by the government in all the Basmati and non-Basmati paddy farms inside Delhi."

He said, "In order to solve the problem of pollution in winters in Delhi, the government is constantly moving towards preparing its winter action plan by meeting with different departments. All the departments have been assigned different responsibilities on 15 focus points regarding the Winter Action Plan. Like last year, our government has started preparations for free spraying of bio decomposer in the fields for stubble decomposition."

He continued, "Paddy is cultivated only in some parts inside Delhi. Through our policies, we have ensured that there is no pollution from stubble in Delhi. Last year too, free sprinkling of the bio-decomposer was done by the government. We received a very positive result last year, the stubble was decomposed properly and there was also an increase in the fertility of the fields. Another problem faced by the farmers is that the time interval between the harvesting of paddy crops and sowing of wheat is very short. Therefore, the government has started preparing for the spraying in time so that there is no delay in the whole exercise. The free bio-decomposer will be sprayed by the government in all the Basmati and non-Basmati paddy fields across Delhi. Officers are being trained in Delhi Secretariat for free bio-decomposer spraying."

The Development Minister also stated that the Agriculture Department has been instructed to get forms filled by the farmers at the earliest to assess the area to be taken under the spraying process. In this form, the details of the farmer, how many acres of land he wants sprayed and the time of harvesting, are being asked. Farmers will also have to tell the date of spraying in the form so that arrangements can be made accordingly. So far, 957 farmers have filled the form. Along with this, awareness campaigns are also being run by the team about the spraying of bio decomposer among the farmers inside Delhi.

He added, "So far, farmers have filled forms seeking spraying on more than 5000 acres of Basmati and non-Basmati paddy fields. Bio decomposer will be sprayed in all the fields according to the timeline given by them. If needed further, it will be sprayed in more fields. This time Pusa Institute has also made a powder of the bio decomposer, which the government has decided to use this time on 1000 acres as a trial. Spraying of the bio-de-composer will start from the first week of October. In Punjab also, as a pilot project, bio-decomposer made by Pusa Institute will be sprayed free of cost in some areas."