BRS slams Congress government for urea crisis

BRS leader S Niranjan Reddy hit out at the Congress government, warning of a 10–15 per cent crop yield loss in Telangana due to the urea crisis. He alleged black marketing, supply shortfalls, and government apathy, threatening protests if farmers’ needs remain unmet

Hyderabad: Slamming the Congress government for its incompetence in addressing issues of farmers, Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) leader and former Minister S Niranjan Reddy said on Saturday, the urea crisis would have serious consequences for Telangana.

Addressing a news conference at Telangana Bhavan, he said the State government was adding to the travails of farmers by forcing them into long queues and purchase fertilizers, especially urea, in the black market at inflated prices of Rs 350–400 per bag, against the subsidized rate of Rs 266.50.

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Reddy highlighted the distress, citing an incident in Shatrajupalli village where a farmer received a urea sack as a birthday gift, indicating the severity of the crisis. Farmers growing paddy, cotton, and horticultural crops are bearing the brunt of the shortage.

Kharif sowing has reached 45 lakh acres of paddy, 46 lakh acres of cotton and 9 lakh acres of horticultural crops, but the paddy area had decreased by 22 lakh acres compared to last year, he said, warning that crop yields were likely to be impacted by 10 to 15 per cent due to the urea shortage.

The Centre claims it allocated 9.8 lakh metric tonnes (LMT) of urea for the 2025 Kharif season, but the Telangana government claimed to have received only 4.5–5.12 LMT, fueling a blame game. Agriculture Minister Thummala Nageswara Rao accused the Centre of shortfalls, while BJP leaders alleged State-level diversions.

“Where did the urea go?” he asked, recalling that during K Chandrashekhar Rao’s tenure, 10 LMT was supplied smoothly for 1.35 crore acres.

The BRS leader also criticized Congress for halting the Rythu Bandhu scheme, neglecting the Kaleshwaram project, and failing to curb black marketing despite claims of neem-coated urea. He mocked Chief Minister Revanth Reddy’s focus on trivial debates like English proficiency and urged him to streamline urea supplies.

The BRS would escalate protests if urea supply was not ensured, he said, warning the Congress government of severe political consequences akin to the past onion shortage crisis.