Madhya Pradesh leads farm fires with 354 incidents; Punjab at 2nd with 220

Madhya Pradesh has topped the charts among states with the highest stubble burning incidents — 354 between September 15 and October 17, nearly double the incidents recorded in the same period last year, the latest government data showed. Punjab is second in the list at 220 fires, with nearly 80% of these coming from only two districts of Amritsar and Tarn Taran.

As per the data released by the Indian Agricultural Research Institute (IARI), Uttar Pradesh ranks third, with 134 fires so far, and Haryana emerges an outlier – recording only eight fires so far and 24 farm fires recorded in Uttarakhand.

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Madhya Pradesh recorded 187 and 262 incidents of farm fire in the same period in 2025 and 2024, respectively, showing an increasing trend of stubble burning in the state. Punjab’s count is marginally higher than the 208 fires last year, however significantly below the 1289-mark in 2024. Out of the 220 fires, a combined 176 have come from just Amritsar and Tarn Taran alone, which were served notices by the Commission for Air Quality Management (CAQM) on October 16, for failing to take effective steps.

“Your explanation should reach the commission latest by 5 PM of October 21, 2026, failing which it shall be presumed that you have nothing to state and action shall be initiated as per the provisions of the Act,” said the notices, issued to both the deputy commissioners of the two districts, alongside the SSP, Police.

IARI, through its specialised lab for crop residue burning tracks farm fires every winter between September 15 and November 30 in six states – Punjab, Haryana, Delhi, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh.