Middle East Crisis: As Indian farmer prepares for kharif season, Centre assures adequate fertiliser supplies

The central government on Friday assured the availability of adequate levels of fertilisers in the country for the kharif season while acknowledging external supply chain disturbances. Kharif season crops rely heavily on rainfall, sown around June-July and harvested September-October. Rabi crops, on the other hand, are sown around November and harvested in March-April.

Kharif Season: Govt assures adequate fertiliser supply despite Iran-Israel disturbances

The department said that significant growth in urea, DAP and NPK inventories are set to ensure smooth supplies for farmers. The Department of Fertilizers, under the Ministry of Chemical and Fertilizers, assured a strong inventory of fertilisers in the domestic market, capable of catering to the upcoming kharif season.

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The department reported a 36.5 per cent year-on-year jump in the domestic fertiliser reserves, to 177.31 LMT as of March 6.

It also said that this robust buffer is driven by unprecedented increase in critical soil nutrients, most notably DAP stocks -- now at 25.13 LMT -- and a rise in NPK reserves -- at 55.87 LMT.

Strong stocks of urea, DAP and NPK

The availability of urea has risen to 59.30 LMT, it noted. Urea is the country's most widely consumed fertiliser.

The country is exceptionally well-stocked and fully insulated against any global supply chain shock, as it approach the peak kharif sowing season, as reflected in the robust inventory, it noted.

These reserves -- marking significant growth over the year-ago period -- provide a vital operational cushion, ensuring that international logistics bottlenecks do not translate into domestic farm-gate shortages.

It also said the government is actively maneuvering to optimise resources amid the LNG supply strain.

At a high-level review meeting held in the department, the government assured fertiliser companies that gas supply to their sector remains a top national priority.

“Farmers are the priority of the government, and their interests will not be compromised under any circumstances. Farmers are encouraged to proceed with their kharif preparations without any panic,” noted the department.
The government has imported 98 lakh metric tonnes of finished fertilisers up to February, with more than 17 lakh metric tonnes already lined up for the next three months.
Multiple global sources are also being tapped for additional imports of finished fertilisers, said the department.

It also said that it continues to monitor the situation in real time, in close coordination with the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas, in order to ensure early discharge of imports.

The department said it “stands ready to execute quick responses, as global energy markets evolve”.

Why Urea, DAP and NPK matter

Urea, DAP and NPK form the backbone of the country's fertiliser consumption. While all three provide three primary nutrients -- nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium -- for crops, it's their varying proportion in each that distinguishes their applicability.

Urea is primarily a nitrogen fertiliser, containing about 46 per cent nitrogen. Nitrogen supports leafy growth. It is used heavily in cereal crops such as rice and wheat during both kharif and rabi seasons.

DAP provides a combination of phosphorus and nitrogen, typically containing around 46 per cent phosphorus and 18 per cent nitrogen. It is critical during the early stages of crop growth as it promotes strong root development, seed formation and early plant establishment.
NPK fertilisers are compound fertilisers that contain all three nutrients in balanced or customised ratios, like 10-26-26 or 12-32-16. These fertilisers are used when farmers need to address multiple nutrient requirements of the soil simultaneously.