The Punjab Police has registered 12 first information reports against farmers for stubble burning since September 18, the Hindustan Times reported on Sunday.

The state has reported 48 cases of crop residue burning since monitoring began on September 15, according to data from the Punjab Pollution Control Board. Of the 12 FIRs, 11 were filed in Amritsar.

The police began filing the cases from Thursday onwards. No arrests have been made so far.

The action came after the Supreme Court said on September 17 that strict punishment, including arrests, may have to be imposed to deter farmers from stubble burning. The court said that although farmers are important for the country, it does not justify allowing stubble burning to continue unchecked.

“Why don’t you think of some penalty provisions? If some people are behind bars, it will send the correct message,” the bench had told the counsel for the Punjab government. “Why don’t you think of some penalty provisions for the agriculturists?”

Many farmers resort to the mass burning of unwanted crop debris (known as stubble) to clear their fields after the harvest to prepare for the next sowing season.

The burning of stubble in the vast fields in these states, along with the falling temperatures and decreased wind speeds, contributes to air pollution in North India.

The cases filed over the past few...

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