Chandigarh: Haryana's Dahiya khap has decided to mobilise other khaps against stubble burning among the farmers in the state. The khap's president Pratap Singh Dahiya said that they would campaign against burning paddy harvest residue and will start with a special meeting at Kharkho da village in Sonipat where they will come up with a strategy.
Dahiya said there were about 50 villages mostly in Sonipat that fall under their jurisdiction. “First, we want to put our own house in order,” says the former wrestler and retired deputy superintendent of police. A spokesperson of Dahiya khap, Virender Singh Badkhalsa adds, “Today, the image of khaps is like that of a villain but in reality we work for social reform.”
Sunil Jaglan, a leader of Jind's Naugama khap said this was a good initiative and adds, “We are ready to join hands with other khap leaders on the issue.” The leaders have also planned to involve agriculture and environment experts to educate farmers, as stubble burning not only leads to air pollution, but also reduces land fertility. The state government issues an advisory to farmers every year asking them not to burn wheat stubble and recover it with machines for use as fodder. However, the problem still prevails in around 200,000 hectares of Haryana as per official estimates.
Joint director of Haryana agriculture department R S Chahal says that paddy is grown in about 1200,000 hectares especially near the Grand Trunk Road, including Ambala, Kurukshetra, Karnal and Panipat.
