Patiala, Oct. 19 -- As paddy harvesting gains pace amid dry weather, Punjab on Saturday recorded the highest single-day spike of the season in farm fire incidents - 33 in a day - taking the total count to 241.

According to data from the Punjab Remote Sensing Centre (PRSC), Tarn Taran accounted for 23 of the 33 cases, making it the worst-affected district so far, with the total reaching 88. Amritsar follows with 80 cases.

Officials said with harvesting still to pick up in the Malwa belt, which typically records the highest number of fires, the situation is expected to worsen in the coming days. Last year, Sangrur in Malwa had topped the state with 1,725 cases out of 10,909 farm fires.

Conventionally, PRSC monitors stubble burning from S...