Agriculture department Kashmir has strongly refuted news item on mustard stubble burning incidents along the National Highway in Pulwama, terming it baseless and holding no merits.

In an official hand-out issued here, it has been given out that most of the mustard stubble is actually used as mulch—a common practice that improves soil fertility, conserves moisture, and suppresses weed growth. This practice is eco-friendly and agriculturally beneficial, not detrimental

Besides, field-level officers of the Agriculture department have been regularly engaging with farmers and actively educating them about the environmental and agronomic benefits of mulching, and are discouraged from any burning practices.

Divulging the details it has revealed that the instances of stubble burning remain isolated and insignificant in scale, no such major activity is carried out along the National Highway in Pulwama.

Meanwhile, this rebuttal has come on account of a news item published in a local English daily with the headline “Mustard stubble burning turns Kashmir highway into a smoke corridor.” 

The said news item further mentions “Mustard stubble burning turns Kashmir highway into a smoke corridor,” paints an alarmist picture that does not accurately reflect the on-ground reality of Kashmir’s agricultural practices, reads the hand out.

Contradicting the claims made in the said news item, the official statement clarifies that no widespread smoke corridors or visibility hazards have been reported or witnessed, nor has there been any surge in respiratory complaints specifically attributed to mustard stubble burning.

“Linking a few localized burning incidents to broader COPD statistics without robust data is scientifically tenuous,” further mentions the statement.

The department is committed to promoting environmentally friendly disposal of agricultural waste, and the recommendations provided in the article are already being implemented on the ground.