Punjab recorded 357 farm fires in a single day, taking its seasonal tally to 3,144 and accounting for 50.5% of the 6,226 incidents reported across seven north Indian states till November 6, according to data cited by the Times of India from the Consortium for Research on Agroecosystem Monitoring and Modelling from Space (CREAMS).
The latest count keeps Punjab ahead of the other states covered in the assessment. Madhya Pradesh reported 139 farm fires on Friday, followed by Rajasthan with 58, Uttar Pradesh with 23, Haryana with nine and Uttarakhand with three. Delhi has recorded two incidents during the season.
Across the seven states, stubble burning has been reported in 170 districts. All 23 districts of Punjab have recorded incidents, with Tarn Taran continuing to report the highest number at 611. Ferozepur followed with 410 cases, while Sangrur ranked fifth with 281. Bathinda recorded 262 cases and Amritsar 231. Rajasthan’s Bundi and Baran districts reported 312 and 291 cases respectively.
Sangrur and Bathinda have continued to report a considerable number of incidents over the past three days, according to the report. The concentration of fires in these districts adds to the administrative challenge of responding to incidents that are spread across a large rural area but can contribute to pollution affecting urban centres across the region.
The increase in reported fires has been accompanied by intensified penal action in Punjab. Authorities have registered 710 first information reports under Section 223 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, which deals with disobedience to an order duly promulgated by a public servant. Tarn Taran accounted for the highest number of FIRs at 294, followed by Ferozepur with 98, Sangrur with 49 and Malerkotla with 47.
Other districts where FIRs were registered included Jalandhar, Gurdaspur, Amritsar, Kapurthala, Patiala, Faridkot, Bathinda, Fazilka, Fatehgarh Sahib, Moga, Mansa, Muktsar, Hoshiarpur, Ludhiana, Rupnagar and Sahibzada Ajit Singh Nagar. The district-level figures show that enforcement has extended across much of the state rather than being confined to a small number of hotspots.
Environmental compensation amounting to Rs 46.10 lakh has been imposed in 914 cases, of which Rs 24.85 lakh has been recovered. Authorities have also made red entries in land records in 829 cases. Tarn Taran accounted for 294 of these entries, followed by Ferozepur with 124, Amritsar with 89 and Sangrur with 49.
Red entries were also recorded in districts including Kapurthala, Barnala, Jalandhar, Gurdaspur, Ludhiana, Malerkotla, Fazilka, Patiala, Faridkot, Moga, Bathinda, Fatehgarh Sahib, Mansa, Muktsar, Hoshiarpur and Rupnagar. Warning and show-cause notices have been issued to 786 nodal and supervisory officers.
The figures place the farm-fire season within a wider administrative and air-quality challenge: incidents are being recorded across seven states, while Punjab alone has crossed 3,000 cases. The reported next steps are continued district-level monitoring, enforcement action, recovery of environmental compensation and scrutiny of officials responsible for supervision.
