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UP govt mulls blanket ban on stubble burning

Concerned over air pollution and other harmful effects of stubble burning, the Uttar Pradesh government is mulling a blanket ban on it in the state.

"Burning of stubble after the crops are harvested creates massive air pollution. This has an adverse impact on the health of the public.

"It also increases the temperature of farm land and kills a large number of friendly insects and soil bacteria," Agriculture Minister Surya Pratap Shahi. The minister said that in the past few years, stubble burning has created serious problems in various parts of the country ranging from smog to untimely rains, which harmed the crops.

"We are monitoring the situation very closely and planning to put a blanket ban on stubble burning across the state," he said in an interview.

Instead of burning the stubble, it would be wise if it is used as fodder for cattle, he said and added that state government would encourage farmers to cooperate in this direction.

He said reaper machines which harvest the crop by digging the soil must be utilised. "Farmers who do not have reaper machine must switch over to this machine within the next three months," he said.

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