Farmers facing fertiliser shortage again

Come the paddy plantation season and the farmers face an acute shortage of fertilizers. It has been one of the most recurring problems after the garbage problem of Kathmandu for years. Now that the farmers are preparing to plant paddy, there are no fertilisers in the market. The government which makes promises to ensure fertiliser supply for next year during each plantation period, keep on only making promises for another year.

It was no different this year. When the farmers needed fertilisers immediately, Agriculture Minister Mahendra Raya Yadav reached India and inked an agreement for the supply of fertilisers the other day. But by the time the fertilisers arrive in Nepal, the farmers will complete harvesting paddy. It is what has happened for the last three years.

This year, the government has claimed that around 200,000 tonnes of chemical fertiliser will be imported by mid-July. According to the Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock Development, some quantity of fertiliser is being imported at present and some will be imported by mid-July. The Ministry said that about 192,000 tonnes of chemical fertilisers, including urea and DAP, will arrive in the country by mid-July.

Out of 192,000 tonnes, around 102,000 tonnes of urea and 90,000 tonnes of DAP fertiliser will be brought.

Out of the total fertilizer to be purchased by Salt Trading Corporation (STC), it will receive 20,000 tonnes of DAP and 22,000 tonnes of urea by the second week of June, said the Ministry. Similarly, the Agriculture Inputs Company Limited (AICL) will start receiving 30,000 tonnes of urea from the last week of June, said the Ministry.

In addition, 20,000 tonnes of DAP will be received from the first week of July and 20,000 tonnes of DAP fertiliser from the second week of June. The government of Nepal has signed an agreement with the Government of India to purchase 565,000 tonnes of urea and 370,000 tonnes of DAP fertiliser in the next five years through governmentto-government (G2G) process.

The government had allocated a budget of Rs. 15 billion for the import of chemical fertilisers and distribution to the farmers in subsidy for the current fiscal year 2021/22.

During the current fiscal year, a total of 222,000 tonnes of chemical fertilisers, including 105,000 tonnes on behalf of AICL and 117,000 tonnes on behalf of STC, were not provided by various suppliers within the time limit of the agreement.

This created problems in the supply of fertilisers across the country, said the Ministry.