Telangana’s urea shortage pushes farmers to breaking point

Despite the Centre’s assurance of an additional 40,000 MT of urea, Telangana’s Kharif farmers continue to face acute shortages, with long queues and black market diversions worsening the crisis. Crops are yellowing under relentless rains, and disruptions at RFCL have compounded the supply gap.

Hyderabad: The Centre’s assurance to sanction an additional 40,000 metric tonnes of urea for Telangana has not brought the much-awaited relief promised to Kharif farmers.

Long queues at distribution centres continue to snake through rural districts, with reports of widespread diversion to the black market, allegedly involving influential persons and aides of elected representatives further to the shortage.

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As relentless monsoon rains batter exposed fields, nutrient-starved crops like paddy, maize, and cotton are turning yellow, pushing desperate farmers toward the brink of abandoning cultivation.

The Centre’s allocation includes shipments from five vessels, Rek Grace (2,700 MT), GN Ruby (8,100 MT), Grace Harmony (7,800 MT), Endeavor (13,000 MT), and Wadi Albostan (8,100 MT), via companies such as IPL, CIL, and NBCL.

This supplements the 40,000 MT already supplied this month, bringing the total to 1,04,000 MT in September’s first half. The Ministry of Chemicals and Fertilisers has further assured 80,000 MT within the week to clear the 2 lakh MT backlog requested by the State.

But the ground realities paint a grim picture. Official data reveals a persistent shortfall. Telangana’s Kharif requirement stands at 10.48 lakh MT, but only about 5.42 lakh MT arrived by August, leaving a 2.88 lakh MT gap amid expanded sowing. Disruptions at plants like Ramagundam Fertilizers and Chemicals (RFCL), which halted for 78 days due to technical issues, have added to the misery.

Logistical issues in rake and ship movements have compounded the crisis. Opposition leaders, including BRS working president K.T. Rama Rao, have voiced concern over the crisis, citing incidents like a gunman linked to an MLA smuggling a lorry-load in Miryalaguda.

Women in districts like Mahabubabad staged Bathukamma-themed demonstrations against the shortage. Protests staged by the farmers have intensified in districts such as Nalgoinda and Suryapet.

Chief Minister A. Revanth Reddy, on September 4, dismissed scarcity claims as “distribution issues” from impatient crowds, but field reports contradict this. As rains persist, exposing fields to vagaries, experts warn of widespread crop abandonment if supplies fail to reach in time.