Punjab dominates stubble burning but UP’s share rises, Delhi’s AQI enters danger zone in September

Punjab, known to be India's rice bowl for its significant cultivation, has once again emerged as the epicentre of stubble burning this season, accounting for nearly 62 percent of crop residue fires between September 15 and 29, provisional government data has shown.

However, Uttar Pradesh, is beginning to play a much bigger role with its share climbing to 27 percent in 2025, compared with just 3 percent in 2020.

The shift has been noted as the National Capital Territory's air quality has started showing worrying signs of deterioration. September 2025 turned out to be the first month since 2016 when the average Air Quality Index (AQI) stayed above 100 throughout, signalling persistent pollution even before the onset of the winter season's smog. Studies last year had estimated that stubble burning contributed as much as 31 percent to the worsening of AQI levels in the capital region.

Shifting State-level Dynamics

Between 2018 and 2022, Punjab had consistently contributed more than 70 percent of India’s stubble burning incidents, though its share slipped to 29 percent in 2024 as fires surged in Madhya Pradesh, which then accounted for 44 percent of cases.