'Fertiliser shortage will affect Rabi crops production'

Agriculture sector is facing shortage of fertilisers, which could affect the production of Rabi crops particularly wheat and sugarcane, major crops of the sector. "Fertilisers are very important inputs for growth of crops and their shortage would have bad impact on production of all the crops," Muhammad Afzal a farmer from Sargodha told APP on Sunday.
Most of the fertiliser dealers are reluctant to supply the fertilisers to farmers, while some dealers are selling Di-ammonium Phosphate (DAP) at Rs 3,500 instead of Rs 3,050 per bag, he alleged. He observed that some fertiliser dealers had also created artificial shortages in order to earn undue profit.
Chaudhry Farooq, a farmer from Mandi Bahauddin said that fertiliser dealers are delivering a urea bag after two weeks, on depositing of national identity cards with them.
He said that these dealers are also earning undue profits by selling a bag of urea at Rs 920 instead of the government's fixed rate of Rs 635. He urged the government to take measures to overcome this shortage in order to save the cultivation of Rabi crops. It may be mentioned here that the government has decided to provide subsidy of Rs 27 billion on DAP to ensure supply of fertiliser to the farmers at Rs 3,050 per bag.
According to Advisor to Prime Minister on Industries and Production, Mian Manzoor Wattoo, now the farmers could purchase DDAP at Rs 3,050 per 50-kg bag Wattoo while addressing a press conference a couple of days ago had also warned that those involved in black-marketing would be dealt strictly. He said that the ministry of industries and production have had a detailed meeting with the manufacturers and importers who agreed to provide DAP at Rs 3,050 per bag to the farmers, adding that it would be subsidised by Rs 2,200 per 50 kg bag. "The government would provide subsidy of Rs 27 billion to the manufacturers and importers who would pass it on to the farmers," he said adding that prices of DAP would remain the same till December and would be reviewed in January next.
He said that wheat cultivation season was about to begin and the potato cultivation season was continuing in full swing adding that both the crops needed DAP.
The farmers complained that fertiliser dealers are violating the decisions of the federal government by overcharging and not supplying the fertilisers to the farmers.