NEW DELHI, Nov. 7 (Xinhua) -- India's federal government has doubled the stubble burning fines in the national capital territory Delhi and adjoining areas to tackle worsening air quality, officials said Thursday.
According to the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change, new rules concerning imposition, collection and utilization of environmental compensation for stubble burning will be enacted.
As per the new rules, farmers with less than two acres of land holding will have to pay 5,000 Indian rupees (59 U.S. dollars), those with two to five acres will have to give 10,000 Indian rupees, and those with more than five acres 30,000 Indian rupees per incidence of burning paddy stubble.
Earlier, the fines were 2,500, 5,000, and 15,000 Indian rupees each.
The move came after India's top court pulled up the federal government over inaction regarding the deteriorating air quality in Delhi and adjoining areas.
Delhi is among the topmost polluted cities in the world.
Industrial activities, vehicular traffic, and rampant construction are significant contributors to air pollution in the city. In the past years, the air quality in Delhi has become hazardous ahead of winter.
The situation worsens due to the rise in emissions from stubble burning in neighboring states of Punjab and Haryana, which increases the concentration of prominent pollutants, PM 2.5 and PM 10, in the air, much beyond the safety limits. (1 Indian rupee equals 0.012 U.S. dollar) ■