Thread by @alok_bhatt

While I understand outrage on this decision but let me also write a thread about the fact how parali burning debate has never been addressed in right perspective. It is important to stress on the fact that solution to this prob lies in addressing what caused it in 1st instance

https://twitter.com/ARanganathan72/status/1464489784701640707

As someone who has spent a decade in Delhi until 2011, I do remember how this problem of Oct/Nov smog started around 2010. I had written abt it in the past as well but can’t find those tweets-Badal Govt passed PUNJAB PRESERVATION OF SUBSOIL WATER ACT in 09
dswcpunjab.gov.in/contents/docs/…

This Act was passed in the name of preserving groundwater- blamed on rice fields. It is widely held that rice fields use too much water. So Punjab Govt came up with this law & barred farmers from sowing rice in April & forced them to do this only towards the mid June

Paddy cycle is generally 120 days long and hence late sowing means late harvest. Earlier farmers in Punjab used to sow paddy in April and used to get more time to clear their fields. Late sowing meant late time to clear fields for wheat sowing and hence pressure to@clear fields

Farmers,who used to burn stubbles in their farm, would generally finish this by Sep end or Oct beginning- time before the wind flow patterns into Delhi changes direction from the west to north.

Late sowing meant that farmers in Punjab had less time to clear their fields for wheat cultivation. Hence everyone started resorting to stubble burning & wind blowing into Delhi wud carry all the smoke with wind from North after wind flow pattern changes….

This problem became graver after Haryana also passed a similar law on the lines of Punjab. Now why this law was passed? It was actually done in the name of conserving water table. Infact studies proves -against population notion-that rice cultivation support charging of aquifers

Real reason behind this was to force crop patten change in Punjab and promote maize cultivation and allegedly promote GMO variety of Monsanto.

Ask anyone staying in Delhi abt this parali smoke issue & everyone will tell u that this there was nothing in Delhi before 2009!

As I am scientifically challenged, i hope Dr @ARanganathan72 will look into this thread and educate everyone about this argument.

Folks need to analyse why south doesn’t have this prob of parali burning in south where they grow rice thrice in some areas!

Infact this map supports the hypothesis that much of parali burning is happening on the Indian side of Punjab and very less can be seen on the Pakistani Punjab - this proving how one law changed contributed to this issue - not sure what is the sowing season in Pak Punjab!

https://twitter.com/nasaearth/status/1461349959114977287