Pannu hits back at Sirsa over farm fire allegations

Minister Bal Tej Pannu on Tuesday hit back at Delhi Environment Minister Manjinder Singh Sirsa over allegations that the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) government in Punjab was misleading the public about stubble-burning incidents and their contribution to Delhi’s air pollution. Pannu accused the BJP of repeatedly targeting Punjab’s farmers and attempting to defame the state.

The war of words erupted after Sirsa, addressing a press conference in Delhi on November 3, accused the Punjab government of concealing the actual extent of farm fires. Displaying district-wise bundles of FIRs registered in Punjab, Sirsa claimed that despite the state government’s assertions of zero farm fires, more than 1,000 incidents had been recorded and 271 FIRs filed. He also alleged that AAP leaders, including Arvind Kejriwal, were spending heavily on advertisements to deny Punjab’s role in Delhi’s deteriorating air quality.

Responding to the allegations, Pannu said Punjab’s farmers were being made scapegoats whenever there was an attempt to malign the state. Expressing concern over Delhi’s pollution crisis, he said the people of the national capital were like family to Punjab and deserved sympathy. However, he rejected the claim that smoke from Punjab was directly responsible for Delhi’s pollution.

Questioning the comparison between Punjab and Haryana, Pannu claimed that Haryana’s AQI was higher than Punjab’s. He said the Punjab government had made substantial investments in machinery and infrastructure to manage crop residue and tackle stubble burning.
The minister maintained that Punjab had achieved nearly 80 per cent control over stubble-burning incidents last year, citing parliamentary records, and expressed confidence that the figure would cross 90 per cent this year.

Highlighting initiatives to put paddy straw to productive use, Pannu said several projects in Punjab were collecting crop residue to manufacture compressed natural gas (CNG), cardboard and other industrial products. Citing a CNG project on the Patiala-Sirhind road, he claimed that a single unit could utilise stubble collected from around 200-250 acres of farmland.

Challenging Sirsa and other Delhi leaders to visit Punjab, Pannu asked them to assess the ground situation, including the availability of crop-residue management machinery and AQI levels in different cities across the state.

The exchange has further intensified the political debate over stubble burning, crop-residue management and Delhi’s worsening air quality, with leaders from both sides trading accusations over responsibility for the pollution crisis.