The clear blue skies over the national capital may go dark soon with dust and smoke as the stubble burning season nears. The satellite images by US space agency NASA have shown that crop residue burning has already started in several fields in Haryana and Punjab, according to media reports. Punjab annually generates 20 million tonnes of paddy straw, which is normally set on fire to quickly clear the fields for the next crop, resulting in choking of the National Capital Region (NCR) in October and November, and causing major health effects.

The latest NASA satellite data shows that more than 200 farm fires have been recorded in the Majha region of Punjab since September 1, according to media reports. By September 29, the count of fires was 66 in Punjab and 23 in Haryana. During October and November, stubble burning usually contributes between 20 per cent to 70 per cent of Delhi's air pollution. Last year, a report from the Environment Ministry showed that the average contribution of stubble burning to Delhi's air pollution increased from 10 per cent in 2019 to over 15 per cent in 2020.