Initial results from the Indian Council for Agricultural Research (ICAR) on trials on the efficacy of a microbial consortium to break down rice stubble show that the latter can break down in 25 days amid reports from the national capital region of Delhi (NCR) and several other northern countries. Western states struggling with the “poor” air quality index (AQI), which has become an annual phenomenon in recent years around this time of year.
Trials are underway on up to 14,000 hectares (ha) of rice farmland in Punjab, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh (UP) and Delhi, said the head of ICAR.
“No manual intervention is required to collect the stubble after 25 days. A microbial solution can help break down the rice stubble in 25 days, but the tests are still ongoing, ”said Trilochan Mohapatra, ICAR Director General (DG).
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“We had been working in the microbial consortium for a couple of years after the happy seeder was introduced, which is used for handling straw. Last year, the concept was tested at UP, where it had worked, ”Mohapatra had previously said.
The contribution of stubble to particulate matter (PM) 2.5 pollution of the national capital was temporarily reduced on Monday, as daytime wind speeds had increased to 16 kilometers per hour (kmph).
Although widespread stubble fires were seen in Punjab and Haryana in satellite images, their contribution had been reduced due to a higher ventilation rate, scientists said Monday.
The air quality early warning system under the Union Ministry of Earth Sciences (MoES) said the actual current contribution from stubble fires was around 7%, although the forecast was around 19 %.
“The reason the impact has lessened is because of the clear sun and good wind speeds during the day. The fires are widespread and the wind direction is still northwest, where stubble is burning. However, we hope it does not affect Delhi. The AQI is unlikely to get worse in a day or two due to better ventilation, ”said Vijay Soni, a scientist in the air pollution management division of the Indian Meteorological Department (IMD).
Data obtained by the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) of the System for Air Quality and Weather Forecasting and Research (SAFAR) also indicated a 10% contribution to Delhi’s PM 2.5 load from stubble fires. .
SAFAR estimated fire counts in neighboring states at around 1,090. The ventilation index is a function of the mixing height and the wind speed and defines the capacity of the atmosphere to disperse pollutants. A ventilation rate of less than 2,350 square meters (m) per second is considered poor.
Mixing height is the level at which pollutants in the air mix.
“An improvement in air quality was noticed as winds of up to 18 km / h were recorded in Delhi on Monday. Similar conditions are likely to continue Tuesday. However, as of Wednesday, the wind direction is likely to gradually shift to the east and southeast, when the impact of stubble fires can be reduced, ”said Kuldeep Shrivastava, who heads the regional weather forecast center at IM D.
Delhi’s Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Monday urged the Union Minister for Environment, Forests and Climate Change, Prakash Javadekar, to start holding monthly meetings of CMs from all northern Indian states in an attempt for finding a permanent solution to stubble burning.
The Union Ministry of Environment, Forests and Climate Change (MoEFCC) has held 65 meetings with the environment ministers of NCR states since 2016, a ministry official said.
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