RAJANNA-SIRCILLA/KARIMNAGAR : Hit by acute shortage of urea, Telangana farmers, encouraged by the government’s initiatives, are slowly turning to nano urea. This is especially so in Rajanna-Sircilla district, which has witnessed a significant surge in nano urea sales.
According to District Agriculture Officer (DAO) Afzal Begam, the Rajanna-Sircilla farmers require about 13,000 MT of urea but the district has received only 3,200 MT, which is being distributed with priority given to small and medium farmers.
“At the same time, to overcome this problem of urea shortage, we are promoting and encouraging farmers to use nano urea,” the DAO said.
“Our appeal to farmers is not to panic. Use nano urea instead of solid urea. Nano urea is a nanotechnology-based liquid fertiliser that provides nitrogen to plants,” she further said.
Stating that paddy is being cultivated in around 2.4 lakh acres this Kharif season, she said: “Farmers have so far purchased 20,000 half-litre bottles of nano urea. They are spraying this urea in their fields and they are satisfied with its use.”
Special team formed to curb illegal transport
Meanwhile, in the erstwhile Karimnagar district, a task force team, comprising officials from Police, Revenue and Agriculture departments, has been formed to curb hoarding and illegal transport of urea. According to Karimnagar District Agriculture Officer (DAO) J Bhagyalaxmi, border check-posts have also been set up to curb this menace.
In Karimnagar, farmers are being encouraged to use nano urea. “Farmers here are cultivating paddy in around 3.2 lakh acres this Kharif season. Though 43,450 MT of urea are required here, only 27,000 MT reached the district. To overcome this shortage, use of nano urea is being promoted. As part of this awareness campaign, we have conducted a demonstration on the use of nano urea at Metpalli village in Shankarapatnam mandal,” she added.
