Tue, 20 Oct, 2026, 06:06 pm
Reported by The Times of India
New Delhi: The contribution of stubble burning to Delhi’s PM2.5 levels Tuesday touched 4.1%, the highest this season. It had been negligible so far at less than 1%, but the share of farm fires in the city’s air quality is likely to rise sharply over the next three days.
Decision Support System (DSS), which functions under Union ministry of earth sciences, has estimated this figure could be around 8% Wednesday, 13.3% Thursday and 10.4% Friday. The actual contribution of the burning of paddy residue to the city’s air quality will depend on the intensity of such fires and wind direction and speed.
The wind direction is likely to change to north-westerly, which may carry smoke to Delhi,” said Gufran Beig, founder of System of Air Quality and Weather Forecasting and Research (SAFAR) and chair professor at National Institute of Advanced Studies.
The harvesting pattern is different this time compared to previous years, he said. “Last year, Punjab and parts of Haryana had floods, but this time, monsoon was weak. As a result, harvesting was delayed, with farm fires set to peak later than usual. Besides, as many farmers burn paddy residue after satellite overpass time, the burning pattern will be different,” Beig said.
