DW BUREAU / Chandigarh Punjab Government and the Punjab Pollution Control Board today honoured 150 progressive farmers from across the state who did not set fire to stubble for the last five years in an impressive function organised at Kisan Vikas Chamber, SAS Nagar here today. Speaker Punjab Vidhan Sabha Mr. Kultar Singh Sandhawan said that when people come forward to stop any bad practice then the result comes out. He said that the farmer heroes who came to the event proved that farming can be done even following the teachings of Baba Nanak. He appealed to the farmers not to set the stubble on fire so that the environment of Punjab can be made clean and pollution free. He informed that burning of crop residue causes damage to other micro-organisms present in the upper layer of the soil as well as its organic quality. Due to the loss of 'friendly' pests, the wrath of 'enemy' pests has increased and as a result, crops are more prone to disease. While addressing the event on this occasion, Mr. Gurmeet Singh Meet Hayer, Cabinet Minister, said that it is a matter of happiness that farmers are giving up stubble burning, accepting the message being given by the Punjab government. He said that due to pollution, not only the lungs are damaged, many other types of health diseases affect the human being. He also expressed his happiness that the young generation is becoming aware and under the green campaign, they are now participating more in the planting campaign and trees are being planted in large quantities. He said that due to the campaign of the Punjab government, Mini Forests are being set up at various places in Punjab In this ceremony, the experts of the Agriculture Department sensitize the public present in function about ill effects of stubble burning, its alternative methods and about the efforts being made by the government to control the same. In this ceremony, a Nukad Natak was performed by the artists illustrating the effects of pollution caused by the burning of stubble on our health and the environment. During the function, the progressive farmers also shared their experiences with the audience regarding the benefits of not burning the residue to paddy like increased fertility of soil and less requirement of fertilizers etc. Among them, Gurpreet Singh Chandbaja Surjit Singh Sadhugarh, Ranjit Singh Basi Pathans Ghumandgarh, Kabal Singh Chugawan told the farmers how they did farming without burning the stubble residue. (editor@dailyworld.in)