Telangana, Centre differ on urea supply during Vanakalam

The Telangana government has sought additional urea allocation, citing a fertiliser shortage during Vanakalam. However, the Centre told Parliament that the State received more urea than its pro-rata requirement and had sufficient closing stocks, disputing the shortage claim

Hyderabad: The State and Central governments have presented contrasting claims on availability of urea in Telangana during the ongoing Vanakalam season. While the State government has reported a fertiliser shortage, the Centre has maintained that urea supply has been adequate.

On July 8, Agriculture Minister Tummala Nageswara Rao wrote to Union Minister for Chemicals and Fertilisers JP Nadda seeking additional urea allocation for July to offset the shortfall reported between April and June.

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The Minister maintained that the fertiliser demand had increased as sowing was completed in 55.52 lakh acres this season, compared to 52.04 lakh acres during the corresponding period last year. He said Telangana was facing a shortage of 45,000 tonnes of urea, 1.04 lakh tonnes of DAP and 2.53 lakh tonnes of complex fertilisers.

Rao also urged the Centre to allocate more than 90 per cent of the urea produced at Ramagundam Fertilizers and Chemicals Limited (RFCL) to Telangana. However, in a written reply to an unstarred question raised by Congress Rajya Sabha MP Vem Narender Reddy on Tuesday, the Central government said urea availability in Telangana had remained adequate during the ongoing Kharif (Vanakalam) season.

Union Minister of State for Chemicals and Fertilisers Anupriya Patel said that between April 1 and July 15, Telangana received 7.28 lakh metric tonnes of urea against the pro-rata requirement of 6.73 lakh metric tonnes. The State also had a closing stock of 3.76 lakh metric tonnes as of July 15.

No priority to Telangana

The Congress MP also asked whether the Centre had a policy to give priority to Telangana in allocating urea produced at RFCL.

In response, the Union Minister said allocating most of the production from a single fertiliser plant to one State could disrupt supplies in the event of plant shutdowns, maintenance, seasonal demand fluctuations or logistics issues.

She added that before every cropping season, the Department of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare assesses fertiliser requirements in consultation with all States. Based on the month-wise and State-wise projections, the Department of Fertilisers allocates adequate quantities and issues a monthly supply plan to ensure timely availability.