Burns In India Research Articles

Research Insights into Punjab’s Stubble Burning Menace

The current investigation endeavors to evaluate the prevalence of stubble burning in India, with a special focus on the state of Punjab. The study emphasizes the enormity of stubble burning by examining farm fire incidents, pollutant emissions, its detrimental impacts. It supports the effective management of crop residue along with proposing alternatives to stubble burning. The article conveys the message that stubble burning can result in deleterious effects on the environment, human health, crop growth, natural ecosystems, visibility, and physical infrastructure. The key solutions lie in education, functional literacy, a heightened awareness of environmental laws, rights and duties, stringent governance, and socially responsible public, promoting adherence to the National Green Tribunal’s guidelines for managing crop residue and enlightening farmers about the ill effects of stubble burning on animal, soil, human health, crop biodiversity, and climate change. The available data of districts of Punjab indicates the recent waning trend in stubble burning, thus heralding a positive indication of environmental preservation. Decreased stubble burning is the reward of untiring government initiatives, support and subsidies, awareness programs, advanced research and technology, and enforcement of stringent regulations combined with recognition of the deleterious environmental impacts of stubble burning. This research article indicates that there is still a need for efforts to be made to eliminate stubble burning altogether.

Stubble Burning in India: Environmental Concern and Alternative Tools

India is recognized as the world's second-largest agro-based economy. With 20% of the world's total rice production, India ranks second in the world behind China. Farmers in northern India, including Punjab, Haryana, and other regions, frequently burn any leftover stubble or straw in their fields after the grain harvest. So as to decrease the quantity of agricultural waste, farmers carry out this clearing technique (Parali burning) to get the fields ready for the next planting season. In India as well as other countries throughout the world, crop residue burning is an alarming issue. Every year, throughout the months of September and October, the Delhi and its nearby areas witness significant air pollution due to stubble burning after rice harvesting, which leads to chaos. Despite implementing numerous significant steps, both the Central and Delhi governments have not yet been able to resolve this issue. There are several adverse consequences of burning stubble, such as the release of potentially dangerous pollutants into the air, increased smog production, and worsened human health. Moreover, this has a detrimental effect on the nutritious value of the soil. Crop residue can be dealt with different efficient ways, even though it cannot be completely eradicated. In this regard, the present article aims to investigate optional environmental friendly disposal methods for stubble burning that India could implement. It is possible to transform stubble into something valuable in a number of ways such as the production of electricity from biomass, domestic animal feed, or even the production of necessary end products like medicines, health products, and composts. Furthermore, addition of crop leftovers into soil can also improve the physical, chemical, and biological qualities of soil in a number of ways. In North India, the majority of farmers think burning is the best option as they are unaware of various other options available to control stubble. Therefore, extensive awareness campaigns are required to inform farmers about the adverse impacts of stubble burning and the availability of other better financially viable solutions.

Analyzing the interconnected dynamics of domestic biofuel burning in India: unravelling VOC emissions, surface-ozone formation, diagnostic ratios, and source identification

The impacts of burning biomass fuels for cooking and heating in indian homes on public health and communities.

Harnessing Technology and Entrepreneurship for Sustainable Crop Burning Remediation in India

This study explores the intersection of sustainability, technology, and entrepreneurship in addressing crop burning in India. Crop residue burning is a significant contributor to air pollution and environmental degradation, posing severe health risks and economic challenges. This research investigates the environmental and socio-economic impacts of crop burning, while also analysing current technological solutions such as the Happy Seeder and Pusa decomposer, which have shown promise in reducing residue burning. It also examines policy outcomes and entrepreneurial initiatives that aim to scale these solutions, driving adoption among farmers. Through a comprehensive review of relevant literature, data, and case studies, this paper highlights the real-world challenges faced during implementation, including financial barriers, awareness gaps, and policy constraints. It underscores that while subsidies, technological incentives, and policy directives are crucial, they must be complemented by sustained on-ground efforts through a collaborative CRM model that unites government initiatives, external agencies, entrepreneurial contributions, and grassroots-level farmer engagement.

Better among the two for Burn Mortality Prediction in Developing Nations: Revised Baux or Modified Abbreviated Burn Severity Index?

Burns is one of the leading causes of mortality in developing countries like India. Most of the major burns requiring hospital care are not triaged adequately for the use of medical resources. An efficient mortality predicting scale would not only help in better care to those who will benefit the most but also make it easy to explain to patient's attendants. Among the various tools, revised Baux (rBaux) and modified Abbreviated Burn Severity Index (ABSI) are two most commonly used scales in developed nations. We proposed this study to analyze the reliability of these two scoring scales in our burn population. This study aimed to retrospectively study the two scoring systems and analyze them for their reliability in predicting mortality compared to actual observed mortality in each case. This study was conducted on all burn patients admitted to the intensive care unit of our hospital. Data on their demographic profile, total burn surface area, thickness of burns, inhalational injury, and other comorbidities were collected from files. rBaux and modified ABSI (mABSI) were calculated. The end result in the form of survival or nonsurvival was also recorded. Appropriate statistical analysis using Mann-Whitney U-test, Chi-square test, and receiver operator characteristic curve was done to look for a better scoring system out of the two. A total of 504 patients were included in the study, out of which 337 were survivors. Female gender was not a risk factor for mortality in our study. The median rBaux score in the survivor group was 100 (80-110) and in nonsurvivor group was 111 (103-123). The median mABSI score in the survivor group was 8 (7-9) and in nonsurvivor group was 10 (9-11). The area under the receiver operating characteristic curve shows mABSI having better specificity for predicting mortality. rBAUX, though more sensitive, overestimates mortality than actual observed mortality. mABSI predicts mortality better than rBaux. A multicentric prospective study is recommended for mABSI to be used as a standard mortality predictor in burns in India.

Greenhouse gas emissions from agricultural residue burning have increased by 75 % since 2011 across India

Quantifying crop residue burning across India is imperative, owing to its adverse impacts on public health, the environment, and agricultural productivity. Specific information about the extent and characteristics of agricultural crop burning can verify the emission potential of agricultural systems and thereby facilitate targeted dissemination of agricultural innovations and support policymakers in mitigating the harmful effects. With a focus on district-level burning estimates, our study provides a comprehensive seasonal analysis of agricultural burning in India, including burned area, dry matter burned, and gaseous emissions for seven major crops from 2011 to 2020. To quantify the actual residues burned, we developed a remote sensing-based approach that incorporates the monitoring of agricultural burned area to quantify the actual residues burned. Including this satellite measure of the burned area greatly improves emissions estimates and minimizes error compared to typical approaches, which instead use an assumed fraction of total residues that are burned for each crop type. We estimated that emissions have increased by approximately 75 % for CO and Greenhouse gasses - CO2, CH4 and N2O - from 2011 to 2020. Total CO2e emissions increased from ~19,340 Gg.yr−1 in 2011 to ~33,834 Gg.yr−1 in 2020. Most emissions occurred during end of the Kharif season, followed by Rabi, caused by the burning of rice and wheat residues. Among the Indian states, Punjab has the highest burning activity, with 27 % (2.0 million hectares) of its total cultivated area burned in 2020. Interestingly, Madhya Pradesh has emerged as the second-largest contributor, accounting for 30 % of the total burned area across India in 2020. Our study demonstrates how satellite data can be used to map agricultural residue burning at scale, and this information can provide crucial insights for policy framing, targeting, and interventions to manage agricultural residues without compromising air quality and climate.

Fields on Fire: Impact and Alternatives to Stubble Burning in India

Fields on Fire: Impact and Alternatives to Stubble Burning in India

Stubble Burning in India: Politics and Policy Responses

Stubble burning has emerged as an important environmental policy issue in India in recent times. This article contends that in addition to the apparent, practical reasons for burning stubble by farmers, there are also historical, policy-based reasons associated with the Green Revolution of India that has led to the perpetuation of the practice. It then provides an assessment of the extant policy responses toward the practice in India, and comments on their efficacies. Having done so, the article maintains that it would be more prudent to approach stubble burning by contextualising it within other environmental issues (and consequent policies) and not as an isolated issue in itself so that environmental sustainability and ecological holism are realised.

Air quality impacts of crop residue burning in India and mitigation alternatives

Crop residue burning contributes to poor air quality and imposes a health burden on India. Despite government bans and other interventions, this practice remains widespread. Here we estimate the impact of changes in agricultural emissions on air quality across India and quantify the potential benefit of district-level actions using an adjoint modeling approach. From 2003 to 2019, we find that agricultural residue burning caused 44,000–98,000 particulate matter exposure-related premature deaths annually, of which Punjab, Haryana, and Uttar Pradesh contribute 67–90%. Due to a combination of relatively high downwind population density, agricultural output, and cultivation of residue-intensive crops, six districts in Punjab alone contribute to 40% of India-wide annual air quality impacts from residue burning. Burning two hours earlier in Punjab alone could avert premature deaths up to 9600 (95% CI: 8000–11,000) each year, valued at 3.2 (95% CI: 0.49–7.3) billion US dollars. Our findings support the use of targeted and potentially low-cost interventions to mitigate crop residue burning in India, pending further research regarding cost-effectiveness and feasibility.

Future emissions of greenhouse gases, particulate matter and volatile organic compounds from municipal solid waste burning in India

Waste generation projections for the 21st century are important for the investigation of long-term global environmental problems, and greenhouse gas emissions associated with waste management. This paper presents future waste generation and open waste burning projections for India, which are consistent with the scenarios in the shared socio-economic pathways (SSPs) database. India's waste generation will increase to 547 Tgy−1 and 828 Tgy−1, by 2030 and 2050, respectively, if India's waste generation rates converge to those of developed economies under the fossil fuel based economic growth projections of SSP5. This will increase open waste burning emissions by 140 % and 110 % over 2015 levels by 2030 and 2050, respectively. Business-as-usual projections predict a waste generation of 268 ± 14 Tgy−1 by 2030 and 356 ± 34 Tgy−1 by 2050 and elimination of waste burning other than landfill fires by the mid-2040s. Aggressive promotion of source segregation and treatment of biodegradable waste under a sustainable development scenario (SSP1) can advance this transition despite higher income growth and reduce waste burning from 68 (45–105) Tgy−1 in 2015 to 21–48 Tgy−1 and 2–22 Tgy−1 of waste burning by 2030 and 2050, respectively. The failure of programs targeted at this waste component would result in 31–60 Tgy−1 and 26–108 Tgy−1 of waste burning by 2030 and 2050, respectively. For the SSP5 income trajectory a failure to successfully source segregate and treat biodegradable waste would almost double open waste burning by 2050.

Rajindra Singh Gill

<h3>Background</h3> Low/middle-income countries carry a disproportionate burden of the morbidity and mortality from thermal burns. Nearly 70% of burn deaths worldwide are from thermal burns in India. Delays to medical...

A state of the art review in crop residue burning in India: Previous knowledge, present circumstances and future strategies

Sustainable management of surplus paddy residue in the Indo-Gangetic plain is a back-breaking task for farmers due to lack of viable options. Eventually, farmers prefer to incinerate it mindlessly. Sustainable residue management is important because paddy straws are rich in nutrients and can be translated into value added products. Several important reasons like short time span for sowing wheat, limited farm mechanisation, scarce manpower and poor acceptability of paddy straw as fodder are the root causes behind this residue burning. The aim of this paper is to find the fundamental causes behind this illicit practice and mark the harmful effects of residue burning on ecosystem. This manuscript also deciphers in depth strategies, environmental laws, socio-economic policy frameworks and future thrusts which would offer multifaceted avenues for the sustainable management of crop residues. Losses of essential nutrients from the soil and in the residue, along with emission of potential greenhouse gases (GHGs) are the major repercussions of this mal-practice. Adaption and commercialisation of resource conservation technologies like conservation agriculture (CA) with low silica content in rice varieties are excellent opportunities to look after. Value addition by preparation of compost, mushroom production, biogas/oil generation, and producing energy in the power plants are new avenues to convert this waste into wealth. Respective state and central government along with different private organisations are working hand in hand to spread awareness and control stubble burning. Fostering the current technologies through policy interventions and organising training camps in the village level with monetary incentives are the important strategies to look for.

Biomethanation of Crop Residues to Combat Stubble Burning in India: Design and Simulation Using ADM1 Mathematical Model

Stubble burning in India continues despite the severe consequences on the environment and the massive health crisis in the country. Farmers resort to such practices as a cheap and hasty solution post-harvest, which helps them prepare for their next crops. This study employs a mathematical model, the ADM1 (Anaerobic Digestion Model No. 1), to design a virtual biogas plant in the SIMBA simulation platform. The plant was designed keeping the small-scale farmers in mind, hence, cost-effectiveness, simplicity in design and operation remained a priority. Simulations were performed with different crop leftovers that are widely subjected to on-farm burning in the country such as from rice, wheat, sugarcane, cotton and maize. Simulation trials were performed for each crop residue for nearly two years, to observe the digester performance and possible disruptions over prolonged periods. The optimal feeding ratio and operating conditions for process stability were determined. Simulations revealed generation of nearly 9–10 m3 methane per day, equivalent to 90–100 kWh electricity. Co-fermentation with animal manures was strongly recommended by the model for process stability and to avoid pH disruptions due to organic acid accumulations. Policy makers and farmers are, thus, encouraged to explore a sustainable alternative to generate energy from stubble.

Unintended consequences of Indian groundwater preservation law on crop residue burning

This paper examines the unintended consequences of a policy aimed at improving the groundwater level on crop residue burning in India. The Preservation of Subsoil Water Act, 2009 implemented in two Indian states bans the transplantation of paddy before mid-June to preserve groundwater. Theoretically, this leaves a short window of time for clearing the field before the next crop and thus increases the likelihood of farmers adopting time-saving methods like crop residue burning. Using a difference-in-difference framework we find that the ban results in both delay and an increase in crop residue burning in the winter months.

COVID-19 pandemic and sudden rise in crop residue burning in India: issues and prospects for sustainable crop residue management.

The seasonal burning of crop residue significantly affects the environment, leading to poor air quality over Indo-Gangetic Plain (IGP) in India. Hence, there have been significant efforts to minimize crop residue burning through policy, innovations, and awareness measures. However, an abrupt increase in paddy residue burning was observed over IGP during 2020. Hence, the study explores the factors leading to this sharp rise. The business as usual trends analysis revealed that paddy crop residue burning activities increased significantly (60%) in 2020 compared to the previous year. The massive increase in crop residue burning consequently seems to be linked with the COVID-19 pandemic, which affected the farmer’s income, including the poor compliance by the regulatory authorities. The study also highlights the issues and prospects for sustainable crop residue management and explores the solutions to minimize crop residue burning. There are few crops in India that have guaranteed minimum sale price and are also subsidized. These provisions encourage farmers to grow those particular crops, resulting in the generation of large amounts of crop residue from these specific crops. There have been several efforts by the Indian government, including based on recent court intervention. Still, there is no respite from burning activities and the occurrence of Delhi winter smog every year. Hence, the study emphasizes a need to adopt integrated approaches having in situ eco-friendly solutions, which enhances the farmer’s income and focuses on employability, capacity building, awareness generation, and in situ economically viable solutions.Graphical abstract

Burns in India: a call for health policy action

Burns in India: a call for health policy action

Suitability of rice straw for biochar production through slow pyrolysis: Product characterization and thermodynamic analysis

The main objective of the present study is to turn the wheel from waste to wealth by sustainable rice straw management practices over field burning in India. For that, slow pyrolysis of rice straw was carried out in a fixed bed reactor. The result indicated an increase in process temperature (300–600 °C) led to the decreased biochar yield, while pH (8.28–11.4), pore-volume (0.0087–0.059 cm3/g), surface area (12.78–83.06 m2/g), and HHV (17.63–20.13 MJ/kg) of biochar increased. The maximum bio-oil yield was obtained at 500 °C, and its characterization study indicated a high amount of phenol and aromatic compounds. The composition of H2 (1.9–17.72%) and CH4 (2.3–8.82%) in the gas and heating value (6.5–9.4 MJ/Nm3) of the gas increased with temperature. The energy (84.22–89.61%) and exergy efficiency (74.41–87.37%) of the pyrolysis system increased with process temperature, and the thermodynamic optimization was achieved at 600 °C.

Crop Residue Management in India: Stubble Burning vs. Other Utilizations including Bioenergy

In recent studies, various reports reveal that stubble burning of crop residues in India generates nearly 150 million tons of carbon dioxide (CO2), more than 9 million tons of carbon monoxide (CO), a quarter-million tons of sulphur oxides (SOX), 1 million tons of particulate matter and more than half a million tons of black carbon. These contribute directly to environmental pollution, as well as the haze in the Indian capital, New Delhi, and the diminishing glaciers of the Himalayas. Although stubble burning crop residue is a crime under Section 188 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and the Air and Pollution Control Act (APCA) of 1981, a lack of implementation of these government acts has been witnessed across the country. Instead of burning, crop residues can be utilized in various alternative ways, including use as cattle feed, compost with manure, rural roofing, bioenergy, beverage production, packaging materials, wood, paper, and bioethanol, etc. This review article aims to present the current status of stubble-burning practices for disposal of crop residues in India and discuss several alternative methods for valorization of crop residues. Overall, this review article offers a solid understanding of the negative impacts of mismanagement of the crop residues via stubble burning in India and the other more promising management approaches including use for bioenergy, which, if widely employed, could not only reduce the environmental impacts of crop residue management, but generate additional value for the agricultural sector globally.

Quantifying the high resolution seasonal emission of air pollutants from crop residue burning in India

Biomass burning, a recurring global phenomenon is also considered an environmental menace, making headlines every year in India with onset of autumn months. Agriculture is demographically the broadest economic sector and plays a significant role in the overall socio-economic fabric of India. Hence, disposal of crop residue is done mainly by burning leading to deterioration of air quality. Residue burning in parts of India is blamed for changing air quality in nearby cities. The spatial distribution of these emissions has always been a challenge due to various data constraints. We hereby present a comprehensive spatially resolved seasonal high resolution gridded (∼10 km × ∼10 km) emission inventory of major pollutants from crop residue burning source in India for the latest year 2018. The winter months contributes almost around ∼50% of total emission followed by summer (∼48%), which is the prime cause of changing air quality in nearby cities. Among all the crops; rice, wheat, maize and sugarcane accounts ∼90% of total PM10 load in the country. The estimated emission for PM2.5, PM10, BC and OC, CO, NOx, SO2, VOC, CH4 and CO2 are found to 990.68 Gg/yr, 1231.26 Gg/yr, 123.33 Gg/yr, 410.99 Gg/yr, 11208.18 Gg/yr, 484.55 Gg/yr, 144.66 Gg/yr, 1282.95 Gg/yr, 785.56 Gg/yr and 262051.06 Gg/yr respectively. The cropping pattern and its role in different geographic regions are analysed to identify all potential emission hotspots regions scattered across the country. The developed gridded emissions inventory is envisaged to serve as an important input to regional atmospheric chemistry transport model to better quantify its contribution in deteriorating air quality in various regions of India, paving the way to policy makers to better plan the mitigation and control strategies. The developed fundamental tool is likely to be useful for air quality management.

Nexus Between Crop Residue Burning, Bioeconomy and Sustainable Development Goals Over North-Western India

The crop residue burning in India particularly North-western India is responsible for air pollution episodes and public health concerns; greenhouse gases emissions and radiation imbalance; and declining soil organic matter and soil productivity. The objectives of this paper are to estimate the crop residue burning and emissions from crop residue burning, to recommend interventions in crop residue management and to propose a crop residue management-bioeconomy model incorporating strategies to sustainably manage the crop residues through interventions that enable waste valorization, food and nutritional security, farmers’ livelihood and sustainable agricultural production system. A national inventory on crop residue burning including the pollutant species was prepared using the IPCC methodology. The crop types included for the estimation are cereals, pulses, oilseeds, sugarcane, cotton, jute and Mesta. The total amount of crop residues generated and burned for the year 2017–18 was estimated at 516 million tonnes and 116 million tonnes respectively. It is estimated that 116.3 Tg of crop residues burning released about 176.1 Tg of CO2, 10 Tg of CO, 313.9 Gg of CH4, 8.14 Gg of N2O, 151.14 Gg of NH3, 813.8 Gg of NMVOC, 453.4 Gg of PM2.5, and 935.9 Gg of PM10. The emission estimates can be a proxy to prepare the national level inventory of air pollutant species from crop residue burning. The crop residue management (CRM) demands a transition from the traditional zone of CRM to bioeconomy zone of CRM, wherein the interventions aim at the sustainability of agroecosystem. The proposed bioeconomy model has a four-pronged strategy that includes smart agriculture practices, waste bioeconomy involving aspirational principles of bioeconomy, capacity building of stakeholders’ and proactive government policy. Sustainable agricultural bioeconomy provides ample opportunities to reduce crop residue burning, increase farmers’ livelihood and decarbonize the agricultural production. India’s efforts and policies can provide lessons for other agricultural regions having similar environmental constraints.