Economic assessment of technologies aimed at reducing air pollution in rice-wheat farming system in north-west India

The burning of rice stubbles is widely practised in rice based farming systems in north-west India (Punjab, Haryana and Uttar Pradesh). The practice leads to substantial air pollution and associated adverse health effects, increased greenhouse emissions, loss of soil organic matter and lower soil moisture levels. The recently developed ‘Happy Seeder’ (HS) technology, a tractor powered machine capable of direct drilling wheat in standing rice stubbles, provides an alternative to burning. However, the adoption of this technology has been limited and burning of rice stubbles remains widespread. The Australian Centre for International Agricultural Research (ACIAR) funded research to assess possible policy responses to encourage alternatives to stubble burning. In this paper we use a whole farm model to evaluate potential policy incentives that might lead to the wider adoption. We assess farm level responses to alternative settings and consider the merits of different forms of intervention.