The pollution problem is about the allocation of right resources in the right areas. It is a political problem more than an economic one
Delhi starts to become dystopian, a few weeks before Diwali, and this continues for around a month after the festival of lights. The conventional explanation for the Delhi smog (in fact, it impacts large parts of North India) is the burning of rice straw by the farmers of Punjab (primarily), Haryana and western Uttar Pradesh.
The farmers use mechanical harvesters in order to cut, thresh and clean rice from paddy. The problem is that these harvesters leave six to eight inch long straws on the field, which cannot be used as animal feed because of the high silica content, which the cattle cannot digest.
Further, the fields need to be prepared for the winter wheat crop in a matter of two to three weeks. There are machines available which can take care of the straws, but machines cost money, whereas, all that is needed to start a fire is a matchstick.
Of course, there is the threat of fines for those who choose to set their fields on fire. But it still makes sense for a farmer to start a fire, even if he gets caught and has to pay a fine, given that machines are expensive. Also, most farmers don’t want to spend money on machines that they are likely to use once or twice a year, yet still require maintenance all through the year.
This is the conventional explanation of why farmers in Punjab, and other states, burn rice straw and how that causes a cloud of smog across large parts of Northern India. But there is a more important question which no one is asking—Why are semi-arid states like Punjab and Haryana growing rice in the first place?
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