5 months ago
1
A terrible shortage of fertilizers, peculiarly urea, potash and phosphate, has triggered a situation successful Kuttanad and different parts of Alappuzha territory successful Kerala, wherever puncha harvest play is nether way. The play accounts for the largest acreage of paddy cultivation successful the district. Besides paddy, these fertilizers are indispensable for different crops arsenic well.
“Paddy crops necessitate urea exertion betwixt 18 and 22 days aft planting. In galore fields, it is already clip for this application. However, farmers are uncovering it hard to procure capable quantities of fertilizers. It is precocious clip the authorities addressed the issue, arsenic determination are superior concerns that productivity volition beryllium affected. Farmers are staring astatine immense losses,”said Siji Chacko, secretary, Aikya Kuttanad Padasekhara Ekopana Samithi.
“The terrible shortage has forced galore padasekhara samithis and farmers to skip cultivation during the puncha season. This could severely impact cultivation productivity and propulsion farmers into a heavy crisis,” helium said
Urea costs ₹300 for a 45-kg sack, portion the terms of potash has accrued to ₹1,800 from ₹1,500 per bag. According to sources, the Union authorities was to proviso Kerala astir 43,000 tonnes of urea betwixt October and December, but the State has received lone astir 20,000 tonnes truthful far. The State authorities and farmers judge that the Centre’s propulsion to beforehand nano fertilizers has contributed to the shortage.
Raising the contented of the acute shortage of urea and potash successful Kerala successful the Lok Sabha recently, Kodikunnil Suresh, MP, said that the scarcity was earnestly affecting agriculture successful the State. He pointed retired that the shortage had disrupted each large crops, including paddy, coconut, arecanut, rubber, cocoa, cardamom and pineapple.
Costlier alternative
“In the pineapple assemblage alone, the yearly request is 22,500 tonnes of urea and 15,000 tonnes of potash. The prevailing shortage is forcing farmers to displacement to costlier alternate and analyzable fertilizers, starring to a crisp emergence successful accumulation costs and causing nutrient imbalance successful agriculture,” helium said.
Terming the plight of the farmers arsenic grave, Mr. Suresh criticised the Centre for failing to guarantee timely proviso contempt repeated requests from the State government. In presumption of the superior concern threatening farmers’ livelihoods, helium urged the Union authorities to enactment with urgency and guarantee the contiguous proviso of the required quantities of urea and potash to Kerala.
