Union Environment Minister Bhupender Yadav launched a scathing attack on AAP on Wednesday saying that there has been a 19 per cent rise in farm fires over 2021 in Punjab and the party has turned the national capital into a gas chamber.
He also said that Punjab Chief Minister of Punjab Bhagwant Mann has failed to even provide relief to farmers in his own constituency Sangrur, adding that last year during the period from September 15 to November 2 farm fires in Sangrur stood at 1,266. This year they have shot up by 139 per cent, rising to 3,025.
"Scam is where AAP is. In the last 5 years, the Central Government gave Rs 1,347 crore for crop residue management machines to Punjab. The state bought 1,20,000 machines. 11,275 of those machines have gone missing. Money utilisation shows clear incompetence," Yadav said in a series of tweets.
He said as of today, Punjab, a state run by the AAP government, has seen an over 19 per cent rise in farm fires over 2021. BJP-ruled Haryana has seen a 30.6 per cent drop.
"Just today, Punjab saw 3,634 fires. There is no doubt over who has turned Delhi into a gas chamber," he said.
The Union Minister also claimed that last year, Rs 212 crore were left unspent. This year, the Centre gave Punjab Rs 280 crore for crop residue management machines.
"So about Rs 492 crore was available but the state government chose to sit with the funds forcing helpless farmers to burn the crop residue," he said.
Meanwhile, Punjab Chief Minister Mann and Delhi Environment Minister Gopal Rai accused the BJP of targeting farmers in Punjab over stubble burning because of their earlier protests against the three contentious farm laws of the Centre, which have since been repealed.
Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal said there should be no politics on the issue of farm fires and no FIRs against farmers for setting fire to crop residue.
"Don't do politics on the issue of pollution. Pollution is not only in Delhi and Punjab, it is in entire north India. Don't abuse the farmer. Don't file FIR against them.
"The people of Punjab and Delhi are taking all steps at their level. The Center will have to come forward and work out a solution with all the state governments," he tweeted.
SAFAR, a forecasting agency under the Union Ministry of Earth Sciences, said the share of farm fires in Delhi's PM2.5 pollution stood at 14 per cent on Tuesday. It was 22 per cent on Monday, 26 per cent on Sunday, the highest this year so far, and 21 per cent on Saturday.
The Indian Agricultural Research Institute (IARI) reported 1,842 farm fires in Punjab on Tuesday and 2,131 on Monday - the highest so far this season.
The agrarian state recorded 17,846 farm fires between September 15, when stubble burning usually begins, and November 1. Of these, 12,229 were recorded in the last eight days.
The CAQM - a statutory body formed in 2021 to tackle air pollution in Delhi-NCR - last week said the increased incidents of stubble burning in Punjab this year are a "matter of serious concern".
