Punjab has recorded 5,835 stubble burning incidents across 23 districts following the paddy harvest season, with Patiala district alone accounting for 391 cases, according to a report released by the Commission for Air Quality Management (CAQM). The data, compiled up to Saturday, 15 November 2026, paints a stark picture of the scale of crop residue burning despite an ongoing enforcement drive across the state.

Scale of Incidents and Field Inspections

Of the 5,835 total incidents reported statewide, field-level inspections were carried out at 5,539 locations. Authorities confirmed crop residue burning at 2,442 of those sites. Punjab's total area under paddy cultivation stands at 32.87 lakh hectares, of which approximately 98 per cent had been harvested by the reporting date — meaning the bulk of fire-risk activity is now concentrated in the post-harvest window.

Notably, this phase of maximum stubble burning coincides with the onset of winter atmospheric inversion, when smoke traps close to the ground and significantly worsens air quality in Punjab, Haryana, and the National Capital Region (NCR).

Patiala: Maximum Fines and FIRs in the State

In Patiala, inspections were conducted at 356 of the 391 reported sites, with crop residue burning confirmed at 225 locations. Environmental Compensation (EC) has been imposed in 166 cases, generating a total penalty of ₹8.35 lakh — the highest in the state — of which ₹3.10 lakh has been recovered so far.

Authorities have registered 215 First Information Reports (FIRs) in the district and recorded 'red entries' in revenue records in 139 cases. Red entries are administrative flags against a farmer's land record, intended to restrict access to subsidies and government schemes, and represent one of the more consequential non-monetary deterrents available to officials.

The district administration has also issued 390 warning and show-cause notices to nodal and supervisory officers. However, the CAQM report noted that no prosecutions, charge sheets, or suspensions of officials had been recorded in Patiala as of the reporting date — a gap that critics argue weakens the deterrent effect of the enforcement framework.

State-Wide Enforcement Action

Across Punjab, Environmental Compensation has been levied in 2,152 cases, with cumulative penalties amounting to ₹1,08,55,000. Of this, only ₹40,40,000 — roughly 37 per cent — has been recovered so far, suggesting a persistent gap between penalties imposed and amounts actually collected.

A total of 1,834 FIRs have been filed across the state, and 'red entries' have been entered in revenue records in 2,015 cases. Prosecution proceedings have been initiated against officials in 35 cases statewide, while 1,607 warning and show-cause notices have been issued to officials at various levels.

Why Stubble Burning Persists Despite Penalties

Stubble burning remains entrenched in Punjab's post-harvest cycle primarily because it is the fastest and cheapest method for farmers to clear fields between the paddy and wheat cropping seasons. Alternative machinery such as the Happy Seeder and Super SMS attachments, which chop and mix residue into the soil, have been subsidised by both the Centre and state governments, but adoption has been uneven. Smaller landholdings and the compressed 20-25-day turnaround between crops limit the time available for mechanised alternatives.

This is not the first year enforcement has struggled to match the scale of the problem. Despite year-on-year increases in penalties and FIRs, incident counts have remained in the thousands annually, underscoring what analysts describe as a structural mismatch between punitive measures and the economic compulsions driving the practice.

What Happens Next

With harvesting nearing completion at 98 per cent of the cultivated area, the volume of fresh burning incidents is expected to taper in the coming days. However, authorities say surveillance will continue as late-harvesting pockets complete operations. The CAQM report indicates that state departments are maintaining strict monitoring across agricultural zones, and further enforcement actions — including possible escalation of prosecution proceedings — are likely before the season closes.