Dirty air trick: How farmers outsmart vigil

Farmers in Punjab and Haryana are burning paddy stubble late in the day after monitoring satellites pass over, says a study by the International Forum for Environment, Sustainability and Technology (iForest), released on 8 December. Mint brings the perspectives.

- BY SAYANTAN BERA

What did the iForest study find?

Burning of paddy stubble during October-November is a significant contributor to poor air quality in North India.In 2025, official figures from the Indian Agricultural Research Institute, which uses active fire-count data from MODIS (Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer) and VIIRS (Visible Infrared Imaging Radiometer Suite) sensors aboard polar-orbiting satellites, showed active fires counts fell by over 90% in Punjab and Haryana since their 2021 peak. But the study showed most farm fires were lit after 3pm, well after the satellites pass over between 10:30am and 1:30pm.

How did the study derive this conclusion?