HYDERABAD: Stating that the entire country is facing urea shortage, Agriculture Minister Thummala Nageswara Rao on Monday accused the BJP of politicising the issue when it comes to Telangana.
In an open letter to farmers, the minister wondered why the BJP leaders were hiding the fact that states like Madhya Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh, which are being ruled by the saffron party, are also facing urea shortage and that farmers in those states are staging protests. “Why is Telangana alone being targeted?” he asked. The minister attributed the urea scarcity to the Centre’s inefficiency in ensuring timely import of the fertiliser and its supply to farmers.
“The imported urea allocated to Telangana did not arrive due to geopolitical issues like the Russia-Ukraine war and the Iran-Israel conflict, which disrupted shipping routes in the Red Sea. This is also due to the Centre’s inefficiency in ensuring timely imports and supply to farmers. But the BJP leaders are misleading the farmers with misinformation and politicising the issue,” he said.
“By August, the Centre had allocated 3.94 lakh metric tonnes of imported urea to our state but supplied only 2.10 lakh metric tonnes so far,” he said.
“The Centre mainly allocated indigenously produced urea from RFCL to the state. Of the total 1,69,325 tonnes allocated till August, the RFCL supplied only 1,06,852 tonnes, creating a shortfall of 62,473 tonnes,” he explained.
“Despite repeated requests from us to allocate a higher share from RFCL, the Centre gave only about 40% of its production to our state,” he added.
“Moreover, RFCL remained shut for 78 days from May to August, leading to further delays in supply of urea to farmers,” he further said.
The minister suggested that the domestic urea production capacity be enhanced and use of eco-friendly and cost-effective Nano urea be promoted.
He also suggested the Centre reduce the prices of “complex fertilisers”. “While a bag of normal urea costs only `250, complex fertilisers cost over `1,500,” he said.
“On behalf of the state government, I regret the inconvenience caused to farmers due to delay on the part of the Centre in supplying urea,” he said.