NIZAMABAD: The Agriculture department has introduced an online booking system for urea distribution through a newly developed mobile application available on the Google Play Store.
Officials said farmers holding pattadar passbooks, as well as tenant farmers without formal documentation, can book urea through the app. In the case of tenant farmers, landowner confirmation will be used to validate bookings. For farmers without any documents, paddy sale details will be cross-verified before urea is issued.
Under the new system, farmers need not wait at fertiliser outlets. Anyone carrying the booking details and a one-time password can collect urea from the shop.
In Nizamabad, during the rabi season, around 2.5 lakh farmers cultivate crops across 5.4 lakh acres, with paddy grown on 4.4 lakh acres. Officials have estimated a requirement of 80,000 metric tonnes of urea, of which 40,000 metric tonnes are expected to be supplied to retail outlets. So far, 23,000 metric tonnes have been distributed, while 17,000 metric tonnes are in stock.
However, questions remain on the quantity of urea to be supplied per acre and access for farmers without smartphones. Officials said clarification has been sought from higher authorities.
Agriculture department district in-charge officer G Veeraswamy said the system would address urea-related issues. Each booking will be permitted once every 15 days, with supplies released in four phases. He said the system would also help prevent diversion and excessive use of urea.
Agriculture extension officers and other department staff have been deployed at fertiliser distribution points to assist farmers.