NAGAPATTINAM: Prudent use of fertilisers would avert any form of shortages, officials of the agriculture department, amid an ongoing demand for fertilisers, advised the farmers of the delta region. Braving unseasonal rains, the farmers have been undertaking samba and thaladi cultivation.
However, fertiliser shortages in the co-operative societies hedged in on cultivation process, the farmers complained. According to the agriculture department, Nagapattinam is in need of about 6,100 metric tonnes of nitrogenous fertiliser for the month.
At present, the district is stocked with about 1,700 metric tonnes, which includes the 1,100 of metric tonnes recently shipped from the Southern Petrochemical Industries Corporation in Tuticorin. Similarly, Mayiladuthurai district faces a shortage of about 6,500 metric tonnes of nitrogenous fertilizer urea, while has about 2,000 metric tons in stock.
Dr J Akhandarao, the joint director of the agriculture department in Nagapattinam, said, "The in-stock fertilisers would drive the cultivation for a week longer. We expect another stock of supply to soon arrive. For the time being, the farmers should be careful while spraying the fertilisers, for its excess could even attract crop diseases." N Rajendran, a representative of the Tamil Manila Congress, said, "Several societies have reported urea shortages."
In Tiruchy, however, such shortages were not reported, as the Agriculture JD for the district spoke of receiving around 1,150 tonnes of urea on Saturday. "Tiruchy would need around 4,550 metric tonnes of urea, of which 2,124 tonnes are already in stock. The district is in a better position, and we expect about 3,000 more tonnes in the coming weeks," the JD said.