Karunanidhi for consensus on fertiliser subsidy

Tamil Nadu chief minister M Karunanidhi has called for a political consensus on the issue of nutrient-based subsidy (NBS) for fertilisers.

In a letter to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, Congress president Sonia Gandhi and Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee, Karunanidhi said  “I am also of the view that we need to build a political consensus on this scheme before taking any decision as this scheme would affect a large section of our society.”

It would also be desirable to have views on this new scheme from select state governments with strong agricultural background, he added.

Stating that “any spike in prices would definitely impact usage of fertiliser resulting in shortage of foodgrains in the country,” the chief minister said small and medium farmers would be worst hit as they were dependent on agriculture for their livelihood.

He urged postponement of NBS and called for immediate stocking of di-ammonium phosphate (DAP) and other complex fertilisers for kharif.

It may be recalled that fertiliser minister and his son MK Alagiri had written to the finance minister against implementing NBS and increasing the price of urea. He wanted both the proposals to be kept on hold for a year.