New Delhi: There is ample stock of fertiliser available in India to meet the needs of the country’s farmers, as the country’s stocks are currently at around 195.79 LMT against a projected total requirement re-assessed by the Agriculture Ministry at 383.9 lakh metric tonnes (LMT) for the entire kharif season of 2026, the government said on Monday.
This represents an unprecedented advance availability of over 51 per cent, far exceeding the traditional buffer standard of 33 per cent, according to an update issued by the Department of Fertilisers.
India has added a total of around 163.01 lakh metric tonnes (LMT) of fertilisers through imports and increased domestic production to ensure adequate stocks are available for farmers after the West Asia crisis broke out, it said.
During this ongoing crisis period, India has secured more than 50 LMT of urea and P&K fertilisers. In coordination with 28 missions abroad, India has secured supplies of urea from Oman, Malaysia, Vietnam, Georgia, Nigeria, Russia, Finland, Egypt, Algeria, Turkey, and the Netherlands, and DAP as well as NPK fertiliser from Russia, Morocco, Egypt, the US, Jordan, South Korea, Tunisia, Saudi Arabia – via the Red Sea route to circumvent the choked Strait of Hormuz, the statement said.
In June, the fertiliser stock is expected to reach more than 25 lakh metric tonnes (LMT) of imported urea, DAP, and NPK at Indian ports. India has also issued a global tender for the procurement of 17 LMT urea, which is in progress, the statement said.
Availability of inputs for production of fertilisers, i.e. urea and P&K fertilisers, is being regularly reviewed by the Department of Fertilisers.
The Department is also regularly paying all the subsidy bills raised by the companies on a weekly basis, and at present, an adequate budget is available for the payment of fertiliser subsidy.
While the global market price of urea exceeds Rs 4,100 per bag, Indian farmers continue to get the 45-kg bag at a heavily subsidised price of just Rs 266.5. Similarly, in the case of DAP, against a global price of over Rs 5,000 per 50-kg bag, the fertiliser is being made available to Indian farmers at a mere Rs 1,350 a bag.
India’s fertiliser security remains strong, stable, and well-managed, with availability consistently exceeding requirement across all major fertilisers, the statement added.
(IANS)
