Crop Residue Burning: Is It a Boon or a Bane?

This review paper provides a perspective on residue generation, reasons for on-site burning of residue, its ill effects on soil properties, environment, soil biota, challenges faced by the farmers in managing a huge quantity of residue and various schemes, policies, and punishments undertaken by the government to curb the problem of on-site residue burning. Several studies show that crop residue burning in the field has a negative impact on soil organic carbon, soil fertility, soil microbes, and environment and also hinders the long-term sustainability of crop production. Crop residue is a good source of carbon, nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium, and sulfur; on burning, these cause the loss of nutrients as CO, CO2, NO, particulate matter, and smoke, which are lost into the atmosphere, thereby creating the problem of air pollution and global warming, which will also pose threat to human health. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]