Monsoon delay may hit non-urea fertiliser demand by 28%

Almost 10 mn tonne of P&K fertilisers were used in the Kharif season last year

Due to delay in monsoon, the consumption of non-urea fertilisers like DAP is likely to come down by 28% to 7.2 million tonnes during the current Kharif season.

"We see consumption of phosphatic (P) and potassium (K) fertilisers in this Kharif season may decline by 28% from over last year due to late arrival of monsoon, a senior Fertiliser Ministry official told PTI.

As much as 10 million tonnes of P&K fertilisers such as di-ammonium phoshpate (DAP) and potash were used in the Kharif (summer) season last year, the official said.

Sowing of Kharif crop such as paddy, pulses and oilseeds, which normally begins from April, has not gained momentum yet due to late arrival of South-West monsoon, crucial for agriculture as only 40% of the cultivable area is under irrigation.

Monsoon rains arrived four days late in Kerala on June 5 and are yet to pick up. The India Meteorological Department (IMD) has forecast good rains in July and August.

"The reports from the states show that there has not been much demand for P&K fertilisers so far as sowing of crops like paddy has delayed due to late arrival of rains this time," the official said.

To ensure smooth supply of soil nutrients, the centre has, however, prepositioned 6.5 million tonnes of P&K fertilisers in various states, he said, adding that another 3-4 million tonnes of fertilisers will be moved into the market in July and August, when demand peaks.

After the decontrol of non-urea fertilisers, DAP and MoP prices have more than doubled to Rs 20,000 a tonne and Rs 12,000 a tonne, respectively.

India imports almost half of its requirement of DAP and almost entire requirement of MoP.