Delhi Chief Minister 'officially refused' to use Pusa bio-decomposer in Punjab: Bhupender Yadav
The Hindu
"The Delhi Chief Minister had earlier written a letter to the Centre, saying the implementation of Pusa bio-decomposer had been successful in Delhi. But he himself officially refused to use it in Punjab," the Union minister told reporters here.
Union Environment Minister Bhupender Yadav on Thursday said Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal had "officially refused" to use bio-decomposer to prevent stubble burning in Punjab.
Mr. Kejriwal had Wednesday blamed the central government for rising incidents of stubble burning in Punjab ruled by his Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), saying it had "declined" requests to provide cash incentive to farmers for not burning crop residue.
"The Delhi Chief Minister had earlier written a letter to the Centre, saying the implementation of Pusa bio-decomposer had been successful in Delhi. But he himself officially refused to use it in Punjab," the Union minister told reporters here.
Mr. Yadav also said no minister or representative of the Delhi government participated in the National Conference of Environment Ministers at Ekta Nagar in Gujarat in September, though "ministers and officials of the Punjab government attended it".
Prepared by scientists at the Indian Agricultural Research Institute (IARI) here, the Pusa bio-decomposer is a microbial solution which can turn paddy straw into manure in 15-20 days and prevent stubble burning, a major reason behind a spike in air pollution in Delhi-NCR in October-November.
The share of stubble burning in Delhi's PM2.5 pollution jumped to 38% on Thursday, the highest this season so far. Experts said it was the reason behind the thick layer of pungent smog over the national capital.
An official said the ministry had repeatedly asked the Punjab government to scale up the use of bio-decomposer but "they are only doing it on an experimental basis on 5,000 acres of land".