The record
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- The Commission for Air Quality Management (CAQM) has issued a standard operating procedure directing Punjab, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh and Rajasthan to deploy drones for real-time monitoring of crop burning this winter season.
- The move responds to studies showing farmers burn stubble late in the evening, between 3 pm and 9 pm, to evade satellite detection, since India's satellites capture imagery only around midday.
- Under the SOP, states must prepare drone flight plans, maintain a central database of drone videos for at least three months after harvesting, and stream feeds to CAQM's control centre, with a first action taken report due by August 14.
- The system is meant to enable immediate enforcement, as current satellite data reaches CAQM a day late and burnt-area reports only every 15 days.
What to watch next
- Whether the four states submit their action taken reports on drone implementation by the August 14 deadline
- Whether drone surveillance leads to a rise in recorded farm-fire counts compared with satellite-only monitoring
- How effectively enforcement teams act on real-time drone detections during the paddy harvesting season
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Named India · Haryana · Punjab · Rajasthan · Uttar Pradesh · Commission for Air Quality Management · IARI · International Forum for Environment, Sustainability and Technology · ISRO
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