Urea Distribution Reforms: Ensuring Fair Pricing and Quality for Farmers

The Kharif season is underway, and farmers are in need of fertilizers to support their crops. Among these, urea remains the most widely purchased fertilizer by farmers. While urea is known to boost crop yield, excessive use for soil fertility is not recommended. Recently, the market has witnessed the introduction of natural liquid fertilizers like Nano Urea, which prove to be highly effective even in smaller quantities.

The government provides subsidies on urea, making it available to farmers at significantly reduced prices. However, despite these efforts, some unscrupulous vendors engage in black-marketing urea by falsely claiming a scarcity in the market. This forces farmers to purchase urea at exorbitant rates. The government has now taken a decisive step to address this issue.

For the Kharif season, a fixed rate for urea has been established, ensuring that farmers have access to urea at equitable prices. Any vendor found selling urea above this fixed rate will face severe penalties. This decision, aimed at safeguarding the interests of farmers, is set to benefit millions by ensuring a consistent and affordable supply of urea.

So, what is the newly fixed rate for urea? As per Tej Bahadur Singh, the District Agricultural Officer in Lucknow, the rate for one bag of urea has been set at Rs. 266.50. This rate will be applicable for all urea transactions, whether in government outlets, private agricultural centers, or stores. The government has also imposed a limit on the quantity of urea that can be sold, and strict action will be taken against vendors who hoard more than the stipulated amount.

The government extends substantial subsidies on urea to ensure that farmers have access to it at affordable rates. However, it's worth noting that the subsidies provided by the government are directly paid to the companies, not to the farmers. This means that a 45 kg bag of urea, which costs the company Rs. 2450, is made available to farmers at just Rs. 266.50 after the government subsidy. This underscores the significant financial commitment the government is making to subsidize urea.

To prevent any malpractice, the government is actively monitoring fertilizer vendors. There have been reports indicating that companies are offering incentives to vendors for swift sales of urea, DAP, SSP, and NPK fertilizers. This has led to the sale of counterfeit fertilizers to unsuspecting farmers through Point of Sale (POS) machines. It is essential to remind all fertilizer vendors in the district that they should not be swayed by any form of incentive and should refrain from selling fertilizers to farmers without their proper bio-metric authentication.

In the current scenario, inspectors are conducting thorough checks in all tehsils to ensure that vendors are not mixing actual stock with virtual stock, a practice which is misleading and against regulations. If any vendor is found to be selling urea in quantities exceeding actual availability, stringent action will be taken against them under Section 1685 of the Fertilizer Control Order.

A piece of advice for farmers: Always ensure you receive a proper receipt when purchasing urea. Urea, DAP, and other fertilizers are available at government and private agricultural centers and stores across the state from 10 AM to 5 PM. Your cooperation in adhering to these guidelines is crucial in ensuring fair and transparent practices in urea distribution.

Thanks for visiting us. 

#UreaDistribution #AgriculturalReforms #FairPricing #QualityControl #FarmersSubsidies #AgriculturalInspectors #FertilizerVendors #GovernmentIntervention #UreaReceipt #FertilizerReforms