Subsidy on fertiliser hiked by 140 per cent

Farmers to get DAP at old rate of `1,200/bag Central govt to bear all burden of price hike

New Delhi: In a major profarmer decision, the Centre on Wednesday hiked the subsidy on DAP fertiliser by 140%, costing the exchequer an additional `14,775 crore, in a bid to ensure the soil nutrient is available to farmers at old rates despite a sharp rise in global prices.

New Delhi, May 19: In a major pro-farmer decision, the Centre on Wednesday hiked the subsidy on DAP fertiliser by 140 per cent, costing the exchequer an additional `14,775 crore, in a bid to ensure the soil nutrient is available to farmers at old rates despite a sharp rise in global prices.

The decision was taken at a high-level meeting chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, according to a PMO statement.

“Government is committed to improving the lives of farmers. Therefore, despite increase in global prices, we have decided to make available the fertiliser at old rate,” Mr Modi tweeted in Hindi.

After urea, Di-ammonium Phosphate (DAP) is the most widely used used fertiliser in the country.

“A historic decision was taken to increase the subsidy for DAP fertiliser from `500 per bag to `1,200 per bag, which is an increase of 140 per cent. .... With today’s decision,

◗ THE GOVT spends about `80,000 crore on subsidies for chemical fertilisers every year

farmers will continue to get a DAP bag for `1200,” the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) said.

Despite the rise in international market prices of DAP, it has been decided to continue selling it at the old price of `1,200 per bag, it said. “The Central government has decided to bear all the burden of price hike. The amount of subsidy per bag has never been increased so much at once,” it added.

The government spends about `80,000 crore on subsidies for chemical fertilisers every year. With the increase in subsidy for DAP, the government will spend an additional `14,775 crore as subsidy in the Kharif season of this year, it said.

In the meeting, the Prime Minister “stressed that farmers should get fertilisers at old rates despite the international rise in prices”, the statement said.

The PM also said his government is committed to the welfare of farmers and will take all efforts to ensure that they do not have to face the brunt of price rise, the PMO added.

Recently, global prices of phosphoric acid and ammonia have gone up by 60-70 per cent. So the actual price of DAP is now `2,400 per bag, which was to be sold by fertiliser companies at `1,900 after considering a subsidy of `500, it said.