Overview
- CREA analysis finds stubble burning contributed an average 7% to Delhi’s PM2.5 in November 2025, peaking at 22%, far below 2024 levels.
- Official and RTI data show reported farm-fire incidents fell from 12,750 in 2024 to 6,080 in 2025, with Punjab at 5,114 and Haryana at 662 through November 30.
- Enforcement indicators eased alongside the decline, with FIRs dropping from 6,469 to 2,193 year on year and roughly ₹68 crore in fines imposed across two years.
- iFOREST reports that over 90% of large Punjab fires occurred after 3 pm in 2024–25, warns polar-orbiting satellites miss late burns, and urges integrating geostationary data and burnt-area mapping; its Sentinel-2 analysis still shows genuine reductions of about 37% in Punjab and 25% in Haryana since recent peaks.
- Officials continue CRM subsidies, biomass-use mandates for brick kilns and power plants, and CPCB Flying Squads, as experts caution Delhi’s winter air remains unsafe without deeper cuts to transport, industry and waste emissions, with attention also shifting to emerging hotspots in UP and MP.