Chandigarh: Punjab has prepared a five-year roadmap to achieve zero stubble burning by 2030, with the state government proposing expanded use of paddy straw for biomass, compressed biogas (CBG) and industrial applications alongside crop diversification and improved residue-management machinery, Hindustan Times reported.
The 85-page plan, titled “Comprehensive Plan for Prevention and Control of Stubble Burning in the State of Punjab for 2026-27”, has been prepared by the Punjab Pollution Control Board (PPCB) and submitted to the Commission for Air Quality Management (CAQM). It combines immediate measures for the ongoing kharif season with a long-term strategy covering 2026-30.
Punjab recorded a 54% decline in stubble-burning incidents in 2025, with 5,114 cases compared with 10,909 in 2024. The state now plans to shift from seasonal residue management towards a permanent ecosystem for collecting, storing and commercially utilising paddy straw.
The state is expected to generate around 18.81 million tonnes of paddy straw from 3.1 million hectares under paddy cultivation this season. The roadmap proposes using a larger share of this residue as an industrial feedstock while reducing the quantity of paddy straw generated through diversification of agriculture.
Under the crop-diversification strategy, Punjab aims to reduce paddy acreage by 7 lakh hectares by 2030. The plan also calls for the development of low-cost, next-generation crop residue management machinery suitable for small and fragmented landholdings.
For in-situ management, the state aims to ensure sustained availability of crop residue management machinery according to the area under paddy cultivation. At present, about 1.015 million tonnes of paddy straw is being incorporated into the soil using 158,898 subsidised machines, according to the plan.
The ex-situ strategy places greater emphasis on converting paddy straw into energy and industrial products. Punjab plans to develop biomass industrial parks equipped with common boilers and expand CBG capacity to utilise 1–1.2 million tonnes of paddy straw within three to five years.
Six CBG projects with a combined capacity of 107 tonnes per day are currently operational, while five projects with total capacity of 37.5 tonnes per day are expected to be commissioned during the current financial year. Another 46 CBG projects, including projects allocated to GAIL, HPCL and BPCL, are at various stages of execution or pre-construction clearances and are expected to be commissioned over the next two to three years.
Once these projects become operational, they are expected to consume around 2.8 million tonnes of paddy straw annually, according to the roadmap.
The plan also proposes expanding pellet production to utilise 2.5–3 million tonnes of paddy straw in thermal power plants, brick kilns and industries. In addition, around 6 million tonnes of straw could be utilised in industrial boilers.
To address a key logistical challenge in residue management, Punjab plans to establish permanent bale-storage depots across the state. The proposed infrastructure is intended to ensure that collected paddy straw can be stored and supplied to biomass and bioenergy projects beyond the short post-harvest window.
The state government has said achieving the targets will require coordinated support from central ministries, departments and other agencies. It has also highlighted the need for central policy and financial support, particularly viability-gap funding for biomass power projects and measures to address challenges faced by upcoming CBG plants.
The roadmap seeks to make paddy straw a commercially viable resource for farmers while reducing open-field burning, which is considered one of the factors contributing to seasonal air pollution in Delhi-NCR during October and November.
