93% of farm fires in Punjab, take action, says Centre

The cabinet secretary has urged the Punjab state government to take action to stop stubble burning incidents, which account for 93% of such incidents in India. The Central Pollution Control Board will monitor fires in Punjab and Haryana and submit daily reports. The environment minister has blamed the Punjab government for the air pollution crisis in Delhi-NCR, stating that 93% of stubble burning incidents occurred in Punjab. The minister called it a "criminal failure of governance" and questioned the misuse of funds provided for crop residue management machines. Haryana was praised for its efforts to manage crop residue.