Bengaluru: While parts of the world, especially Southeast Asia, grapples with a shortage, supply of fertilisers in Karnataka remains adequate, with agriculture department officials saying the state is ready to meet demand for the kharif season. The assurance is in line with the Centre’s assessment. In a written reply to Rajya Sabha MP Lahar Singh Siroya on March 24, Union minister for chemicals and fertiliser Anupriya Patel said there are no issues with stock of urea, DAP, MOP and NPK and that domestic urea production stood at 306.7 lakh tonnes in 2024-25. At the state level, Dr Puthra, director of agriculture, told TOI: “We have been given the same allocation as last year — 30 lakh tonnes.” Fertiliser allocation is finalised before each cropping season by the department of agriculture and farmers’ welfare in consultation with states, based on projected demand. Karnataka, in turn, prepares a district-wise, product-wise and company-wise distribution plan from the monthly supply schedule shared by the Union govt. The plan is executed through primary agriculture cooperative societies and licensed private retailers in coordination with manufacturers. Officials said new cropping patterns have helped moderate demand. Oilseeds and pulses, which are being promoted to cut imports, require relatively less fertiliser. “Ragi and other millets that Karnataka majorly produces do not require much fertiliser either. Maize, however, requires a substantial amount of fertiliser,” Puthra said. The Centre also highlighted policy measures to boost domestic production. The new investment policy, 2012 enabled six urea plants across Telangana, Uttar Pradesh, Jharkhand, Bihar, West Bengal and Rajasthan, each with a capacity of 12.7 lakh tonnes per annum, adding 76.2 lakh tonnes overall. Also, the new urea policy, 2015 has increased production by an estimated 20 to 25 lakh tonnes compared to a decade ago.
