MP tops in wheat stubble burning, Vidishaworst
Madhya Pradesh leads India in wheat residue burning, logging 19,355 incidents from April 1–20—four times more than UP, Punjab, and Haryana combined. Vidisha tops the district list despite previous claims of curbing stubble burning. Satellite data contradicts official assertions of progress, revealing a sharp spike this year and highlighting gaps between policy and on-ground implementation.
Bhopal: Madhya Pradesh tops in wheat residue burning in India, reporting four times as many incidents as Uttar Pradesh, Punjab and Haryana put together. Vidisha district was the worst on this count.
According to satellite remote sensing data from April 1-20, as many as 19,355 incidents of wheat residue burning were reported in MP. In the same period, UP reported 3,998 such incidents, Haryana 76 and Punjab 72.
MP has seen a sharp rise in such incidents this year after a drop for two years. In the same April 1-20 period, there were 17,132 incidents in 2022, which dropped to 12,182 in 2023 and 6,773 in 2024, before shooting to 19,355 in 2025.
This data was compiled by Consortium for Research on Agroecosystem Monitoring and Modelling from Space (CREAMS) Laboratory, a division of agricultural physics under Indian Agricultural Research Institute, New Delhi.
Vidisha district topped the MP chart with 2,916 incidents of wheat residue burning between April 1 and April 20. Union agriculture minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan is the MP from this constituency.
This shocking data indicates the yawning gap between officials’ instructions to stop stubble burning and implementation.
On Nov 20, 2024, chief secretary Anurag Jain had ordered immediate steps to prevent stubble burning, especially around cities. A special campaign was to be launched and punitive measures, as per Supreme Court orders, strictly enforced.
On Feb 21, 2025, MP agriculture minister Aidal Singh Kansana said strict steps have been taken to prevent stubble burning in the state. More than 42 thousand 500 agricultural equipment have been distributed to farmers for residue management in the field itself, which has reduced the tendency of stubble burning.
In the past few days action has been taken to prevent stubble burning in parts of the state, including Bhopal and Indore, but the satellite data shows much remains to be done.
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Source : The Times Of India
