Why India’s farm fire counting method is disputed

India plans to monitor toxic farm fires by studying burnt areas, questioning the current method of using orbiting satellites.

India plans to count toxic farm fires by monitoring the burnt area they leave rather than the current method of using orbiting satellites to measure live fires.

Here is a look at how India counts farm fires - a major contributor to severe pollution in the north - and why its method is being questioned.

Farmers in India light fires, in violation of laws that bar the practice, to quickly clear crop waste or stubble left behind after paddy is harvested so that they can plant wheat.

Although the government offers subsidies on harvesting machines that can replace this method, demand has been low due to their high price or long wait for those looking to rent them.

Officials say satellites are the only way to monitor farm fires since they capture a much larger area.

India’s space agency procures data from two orbiting NASA satellites that pass over the northern breadbasket states of Punjab and Haryana, among others, twice a day - around 10.30 am and 1.30 pm.

This is then shared with the government to count farm fires.