DAP shortage adds to farmers’ woes in erstwhile Adilabad district

Farmers across the erstwhile Adilabad district have raised concerns over an acute shortage of DAP fertiliser, weeks after facing difficulties in procuring urea. Officials attributed the shortfall to limited allocations and disruptions caused by the conflict in West Asia.

Adilabad: Farmers, who are already irked by shortage of urea, are facing inconvenience due to insufficient supply of Diammonium Phosphate (DAP), a key fertilizer for growth of various crops.

Farmers of paddy, cotton, soy and other crops are now roaming around fertilizer outlets to buy DAP across Adilabad, Mancherial, Nirmal and Kumram Bheem Asifabad districts. They are struggling to purchase the fertilizer due to severe shortage. They reasoned that the growth of the saplings of the crops would be affected if they did not apply the fertilizer.

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The growers of these crops lamented that they would register losses if the fertilizer was not used on time. They further said that they were advised to apply complex fertilizers in place of DAP, causing financial burden. They stated that the growth of the cotton, soy and paddy was already hit by substandard seeds.

They recalled that they were already witnessing hardships to buy urea. They stated that they were depending on the operator of fertilizers outlets to book slots to purchase the urea which was getting exhausted within no time. They said that the process of placing orders had become a herculean task considering their unfamiliarity with mobile phones.

Officials said that over 5,999 bags of the fertilizer were allocated to Adilabad district as against the requirement of around 20,000. They stated that steps were being taken to address shortage by requesting the government to allocate stocks of the fertilizer. They reasoned that the supply was affected by the West Asia conflict.