Wheat field fires leap across Punjab districts, lack of crop insurance shield worsens farmers’ plight

The Punjab State Power Corporation Limited (PSPCL) maintained that electricity feeders in the area were switched off at the time of the incident, though an inquiry into the exact cause of the fire is still underway. According to PSPCL chairman-cum-managing director Dr Basant Garg, the first alert regarding the fire was received at 12.17 pm by an on-duty employee at the 66 kV grid. Preliminary findings suggest that the 11 kV Sham Khera UPS feeder, originating from the 66 kV Dhabwali Dhab substation, runs close to the affected fields. However, a maintenance permit had already been issued for the feeder at 11.05 am, and no tripping or breakdown was recorded prior to that time, ruling out any immediate electrical fault. “Grid logs and operational data confirm that the incident was not caused by power infrastructure, though investigations are continuing,” he said.

On the same day, another fire incident was reported in Jhanduwala village of the Guru Har Sahai constituency in Ferozepur district, where around 25 acres of standing wheat crop were damaged. Initial reports attributed the fire to sparking in a combine harvester.

Earlier, on April 16, a similar incident occurred in Rattoke Havelian village of Amritsar district, damaging wheat crop spread over approximately 16 acres. A tractor was completely gutted in the fire, while a combine harvester sustained partial damage. Once again, sparking from harvesting machinery was cited as a possible cause.

On April 13, fire broke out in Kothe Gajjanwala village of Faridkot district, affecting crops belonging to three families. Farmers claimed that nearly 40 acres of wheat crop were destroyed in the incident. On the same day, another fire in Sahura village in the Jagraon constituency of Ludhiana district led to the loss of around 8 acres of wheat crop.

These incidents, reported within a span of a few days, highlight a pattern that repeats itself annually during the harvesting season of wheat as well as paddy. Officials from PSPCL, however, state that agricultural feeders are routinely kept switched off during harvesting periods in accordance with village-wise schedules as a precautionary measure to prevent electrical fires. The corporation has also set up a dedicated control room for farmers to report any sparking or fire incidents promptly.

On Friday, Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) president Sukhbir Singh Badal visited the affected villages of Kabarwala and Pakki Tibbi. He claimed that standing wheat crop across nearly 700 acres had been completely destroyed. Interacting with farmers, he said that strong winds had worsened the situation and hindered efforts to control the blaze. He pointed out that small and marginal farmers, especially those cultivating land on lease, were among the worst affected. Badal also alleged, “Loose electricity wires had led to short-circuiting of transformers. I urge the district administration to take up the matter with PSPCL to ensure full compensation for the affected farmers.” He assured that his party would extend all possible assistance to both farmers and farm labourers.

While affected farmers across districts have been demanding compensation for their losses, officials indicated that such relief is typically disbursed through the disaster management fund as per prescribed norms. However, repeated incidents have reignited the debate over the absence of a structured crop insurance policy in Punjab.

The Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana (PMFBY), launched by the Centre in 2016, offers insurance coverage against crop loss due to natural calamities, pests, diseases, etc. Under the scheme, farmers pay a nominal premium – 2 per cent for Kharif crops, 1.5 per cent for Rabi crops, and 5 per cent for horticultural and commercial crops – while the remaining cost is shared by the Centre and state governments. Despite this, Punjab has not implemented PMFBY since its inception.

Punjab’s ‘risk exposure’

State authorities have cited multiple reasons for opting out, including the financial burden on the state exchequer and concerns over transparency in claim settlements. Punjab has also argued that with nearly 99 per cent irrigation coverage, its risk exposure is significantly lower than drought-prone regions, making high premium contributions ‘unjustified’. Other concerns include the 40 per cent loss threshold required to trigger claims and the limited sum insured, which does not fully cover crop value.

Although PMFBY was revamped in 2020 to make enrolment voluntary and introduce greater flexibility for states, Punjab chose to stay out, maintaining the need for a state-specific model. Efforts to formulate such a policy, however, have repeatedly stalled. The SAD-BJP government had rejected PMFBY in 2016, while the Congress government that came to power in 2017 attempted but failed to roll out a tailored scheme due to financial and administrative constraints. In November 2022, the Aam Aadmi Party government announced that Punjab would join PMFBY from the 2023-24 crop cycle, but the decision was reversed in March 2023, with the chief minister stating that a separate state-specific policy would be introduced. That policy is yet to materialise.