CHANDIGARH: Punjab Government today banned the harvesting of Rabi crop with combines from 7 PM to 10 AM so that the crops don't absorb moisture at night and remain dry for sale. An official spokesperson of the Agriculture Department said that the harvesting of crop has been banned during night so that the produce could be clean and dry as per the norms and specifications.
He said crops absorb moisture during night due to dew which adversely affects its purchase by procurement agencies. Also, movement of combines for harvesting at night is risky and can cause fatal accidents.
These orders will be enforced till May 31, 2016. The spokesperson also addressed the problem of stubble burning in the state and said the Agriculture Department has provided ultra-modern straw choppers to the farmers by providing maximum subsidy on them.
He said that only resorting to punitive measures to end this problem would not yield anything and desired results could be effected only when people were properly motivated to renounce this anti- environment and pollution causing phenomenon.
To curb the menace of straw burning, government has already announced a financial grant of Rs 1 crore and Rs 1 lakh for each district and village respectively, which didn't practice stubble burning.