CHANDIGARH: Punjab is set to deploy drones for the first time this year to monitor farm fires in real time, particularly incidents of paddy stubble burning reported during late evening hours to evade satellite surveillance. The move follows directions from the Commission for Air Quality Management (CAQM) to Punjab and Haryana to procure drones ahead of the winter season to strengthen detection of farm fires.
Last year, the state recorded 5,114 cases of stubble burning, down from 10,909 in 2024, a drop of 54 per cent. Paddy harvesting is expected to gather momentum from October 10. The state government and Punjab Pollution Control Board (PPCB) have already been directed by the CAQM to ensure drone surveillance in identified stubble hotspots. As the PPCB started monitoring stubble-burning cases, two such fire incidents were recorded on September 15 in Tarn Taran district.
At present, the PPCB monitors stubble burning through the Punjab Remote Sensing Centre. However, the CAQM had noted that while overall fire events have reduced under standard monitoring, late-evening burning has reportedly emerged as a tactic to evade satellite passes.
The move follows a pilot project conducted by the CAQM in Patiala district in May, where drone footage was found to be clear enough to identify farm fire locations, an official said. Initially, drones will be deployed only in stubble-burning hotspots across both states. Satellite imagery is available only with a one-day lag and is limited to two passes a day.
“Burnt area data is received only once every 15 days, making it unsuitable for immediate enforcement. By the time that data reaches us, the stubble-burning incidents in those locations have already ended, with farmers tilting their fields when the teams reach there,” said an official.
Sources said drones will serve as an effective tool to catch stubble burning occurring during late evening hours, which previously went undetected by satellite monitoring. The state pollution board had already received instructions from the CAQM on drone deployment to strengthen monitoring and regulatory enforcement. Thus, it is chalking out a detailed operational plan and briefing the district administrations on standard operating protocols to ensure drone surveys, if required at their level, in red hotspot areas.
The commission has mandated that drone surveys operate during the day, with a focus on late evening hours, specifically targeting the 3 pm to 9 pm window. The unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) will map active fires and burnt traces against local cadastral maps, ensuring lawful, safe and systematic geo-tagging and documentation.
Senior officials said this marks the first time drones will be used to track stubble fires in the state. Earlier, drones were restricted to monitoring government infrastructure schemes, digital aerial surveys of mining sites and high-resolution imaging for highway projects.
According to the CAQM, farmers having agricultural land of less than two acres shall be liable to pay Rs 5,000 per stubble-burning incidence, against Rs 2,500 earlier. Meanwhile, those with two acres or more but less than five acres would pay Rs 10,000, against Rs 5,000 earlier. Cultivators having land of more than five acres shall pay an environmental compensation of Rs 30,000 per incidence.
The PPCB has identified eight high-risk districts that accounted for 3,454 of the state’s total 5,114 cases last year, thus contributing 67 per cent of the total fire incidents. These are Sangrur, Ferozepur, Bathinda, Moga, Muktsar, Mansa, Tarn Taran and Faridkot, and it has submitted a comprehensive compliance plan to the CAQM.
A total of 1,963 FIRs were registered last year against farmers across the state for burning stubble under Section 223 (disobedience to an order duly promulgated by a public servant) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), and the Punjab government had imposed environmental compensation of Rs 1.25 crore in 2,386 cases. The government made red entries in the revenue records of farmers in 2,176 cases.
Around 31 lakh hectares are under paddy cultivation in the state, and it is expected to generate about 18.81 million tonnes (MT) of paddy straw this season, compared to 19.52 MT last year. The state has seen a downward trend in crop residue burning, recording a 70 per cent drop in 2024 (10,909 cases) compared to 2023 (36,663 cases).
Both states had earlier been asked to prepare a detailed strategy for the Parali Protection Force and late-evening patrolling, as well as the standard operating procedure for deploying drones, including the number to be procured for each village and district and the frequency of their deployment.
According to the Indian Agricultural Research Institute, which compiled satellite data on farm fire incidents between April 1 and May 31, Punjab recorded 9,806 fires this year, marginally lower than the 10,207 incidents in the corresponding period last year. In contrast, Haryana recorded 3,398 fires in 2026, a sharp increase from 1,832 in 2025. In comparison with the rabi season, farm fire counts peak in the upcoming kharif stubble-burning season, which severely impacts Delhi’s air quality.