Punjab farm fire incidents fall by nearly 90 per cent
Agriculture Minister Gurmeet Singh Khudian said the state provided Rs 1,325.35 crore for farm machinery over the last four years.
Punjab has seen a nearly 90 per cent reduction in farm fire incidents, according to reports from Urban Acres. Agriculture Minister Gurmeet Singh Khudian stated that farm fire cases dropped from 49,922 in 2022 to 5,114 in 2025.
The state government has provided Rs 1,325.35 crore for farm machinery over the past four years. This funding helped deploy 94,456 Crop Residue Management machines to assist farmers in managing paddy straw without burning it.
Khudian noted that farmers have already procured 22,763 Crop Residue Management machines for the 2026-27 cycle with nearly Rs 201 crore in subsidies. This represents a 73 per cent increase over the 13,147 machines supplied during the previous year.
The minister provided a year-wise subsidy breakdown, noting that Rs 279.96 crore was disbursed for 27,250 machines in 2022-23. In 2023-24, Rs 168.88 crore was given for 13,179 machines, while 2024-25 saw Rs 259.81 crore for 18,117 machines.
In 2025-26, the government provided Rs 415.7 crore for 13,147 machines. Khudian also mentioned that Rs 6 crore has been allocated for a campaign to apply bio-decomposers.
The government has earmarked 75 per cent of Custom Hiring Centre funds for Primary Agricultural Cooperative Societies (PACS) to help small and marginal farmers. Khudian urged farmers to use the subsidised equipment to protect public health and the environment.