No proposal to hike urea price: Govt

The government will also continue to provide subsidy to farmers for the soil nutrient

There is no proposal to hike price of urea and the government will continue to provide subsidy to farmers for the soil nutrient, the Lok Sabha was informed today.

Chemicals and Fertilizers Minister Ananth Kumar said while the demand for urea is 31 million tonne, the country produces only 22 million tonne. The rest is imported.

He said there will be no shortage of urea at subsidised rates for the farmers.

Responding to supplementaries, he said there is no proposal to hike urea prices and subsidy will continue to be provided for the nutrient to the farmers.

He said the government is in the process of acquiring assets in various countries, including Russia and Canada, through joint ventures so that "near" self reliance can be achieved.

India already has joint ventures with Oman, Senegal, Jordan and Morocco in the fertiliser sector.

The minister said there was a need to educate farmers to use micro nutrients and shift to organic manure.

He said the proposed Haldia-Jagdishpur GAIL gas pipeline will help fertiliser plants in various states in their respective revival plans.

While 46 mmbtu of gas is required for fertilizer plants, only 31 mmbtu is available in the country at a cost of $4.2 per mmbtu. He said the gas is imported at a high cost.

Referring to various steps undertaken by the government to ensure adequate supply of subsidised chemical fertilizers to farmers, he said month-wise demand is assessed and projected by the Department of Agriculture and Cooperation in consultation with the state governments before commencement of each cropping season.

Based on the projects, the Department of Fertilisers allocates sufficient quantity of fertilizer to states by issuing monthly supply plan and continuously monitors the availability.