Watch: Punjab official's bid to stop stubble burning backfires, farmers force him to ignite stubble

As the air quality in Delhi took nosedives, the rising pollution has forced has the Arvind Kejriwal government to shut the schools for two days.

Amid the efforts to stop worsening AQI in the national capital, a video from Punjab's Bhatinda has surfaced online, where a government official is cautioning farmers over the consequences of paddy stubble burning.

Also watch: Delhi air pollution: scary visuals of thick blanket of smog might make you reconsider your weekend plans

While the official tried to stop farmers from burning stubble, the farmers made him light a matchstick and put a stack of stubble on fire. In the video, the official is seen resisting the farmers, however, all his reasoning failed to convince them.

On Friday, Delhi's Environment Minister requested everyone including the neighbouring states to take precautions and follow an advisory to stop pollution levels from nosediving.

The incident took place in Mehma Sarja village on Friday when a team led by a special supervisor went there to check stubble-burning incidents.

The DC said the official was surrounded by a group of 50-60 farmers with allegiance to a farmers' body, took him to a nearby field and forced him to put a heap of stubble on fire.

In the video, farmers could be heard saying that those who came to stop stubble burning were made to set the crop residue on fire.

The video also shows that the official's hand was held by two farmers, as they force him to set the stubble on fire with a matchstick. The video was made by one of the farmers.

"when he (official) was mobbed, what option he could have. He had no choice," DC Parray said.

The DC said that an FIR will be lodged in the matter and those who were behind the incident will be put behind the bars.

“I am also visiting the village myself. We will not let it go away. Lawlessness is not something that we will tolerate,” said the DC.

The DC said he has already written to the Bathinda SSP, and added that the FIR will be lodged on Saturday.

In a strongly worded post on X, CM Mann said “Dear Punjabis, which way are you heading? The government employee went with a message of not burning paddy stubble but he was made to set it on fire…Guru Sahib ji has given air the status of Guru…to destroy this, we are ending oxygen meant for our children by taking matchsticks in our hands… FIR is going to be lodged."

Paddy straw burning in Punjab and Haryana is considered as one of the major reasons behind the alarming spike in air pollution levels in the national capital in October and November. As the window for wheat -- a key Rabi crop -- is very short after paddy harvest, some farmers set their fields on fire to quickly clear off the crop residue for sowing of the next crop. Punjab has reported a total of 12,813 stubble-burning incidents till Friday, according to Punjab Remote Sensing Centre data.