CHANDIGARH: Crop stubble in Punjab and Haryana, blamed for making the already foul air of northern India more toxic on being burnt, will feed four large ethanol and bio-CNG plants being set up in the two states.
Farming in the two states produces 30 million tonnes of paddy stubble every kharif season. Most farmers burn this crop residue as there is no cheaper way of clearing the fields. But this practice, and the criticism that it is leading to health emergencies, could soon ebb as work on the planned ethanol and bio-CNG plants has picked up pace.
