The union cabinet on Wednesday approved a subsidy of Rs 1.08 lakh crore for fertiliser for the Kharif season 2023-24. It has approved a subsidy of Rs 70,000 crore for urea and Rs 38,000 crore for Di-ammonium Phosphate (DAP) and other fertilisers, said Mansukh Mandaviya, minister for fertiliser.
"A total of Rs 1.08 lakh crore will be spent on fertiliser subsidy for the Kharif season (April-September)," he said, adding that there will no change in the Maximum Retail Price (MRP) of fertilisers.
The subsidy is likely to benefit about 12 crore farmers. The Kharif season is crucial for farmers as they rely heavily on fertilisers during this time for crop cultivation and yield enhancement.
Currently, the price of urea is Rs 276 per bag and the price of DAP is Rs 1,350 per bag.
For the kharif season, the country already has a sock of 75LMT of urea, 36 LMT of DAP and 45 LMT of NPK.
The government has entered into long-term agreements with 13 countries to source 70% fertiliser requirement of the country, Mandaviya said.
The country imports about half of its annual requirement of DAP. Around 15% of NPK fertiliser requirements are met through imports. The domestic Muriate of Potash (MoP) is met solely through imports.
Cabinet clears fertiliser subsidy for Kharif season
Source Name: Economic Times