The government has estimated total urea off-take of 2.9 million tons and di-ammonia phosphate (DAP) 0.56 million tons for Kharif crop 2016-17. According to official document of National Fertilizer Development Centre (NFDC), urea availability during Kharif 2016 is estimated at 3.999 million tons comprising 1.2 million tons of left over stocks, and local production of 2.8 million tons.
The urea off-take projected at 2.9 million tons during Kharif season reflects a reserve stock of 1.1 million tons for next season, the document revealed. The off-take of urea in April was 213,000 tons and 245,000 tons in May this year. From June to September the estimated off-take of urea will be 2.42 million tons. Kharif 2016 started with an opening balance of 253,000 tons of DAP. Domestic production during the season is estimated at 422,000 tons and imported supplies of 57,000 tons.
The total availability of DAP will be around 732,000 tons. The estimated demand of DAP during Kharif 2016 is around 560,000 tons, the document noted. According to the document, the DAP off-take in April was 105,000 tons held constant in May. The estimated DAP off-take from June to September will be 350,000 tons. The urea off-take during Rabi 2015-16 (Oct-Mar) was about 2.435 million tons, with a shortfall of 20 percent last year. DAP off-take was 1.44 million tons, showing an increase of 26.6 percent over same period of previous Rabi season (Oct-April).
Rabi season 2015-16 opened with a balance of about 771,000 tons of urea. Domestic production was around 2.668 million tons and total availability remained around 3.489 million tons. A senior official of National Food Security and Research said that adequate use of fertilisers not only increases yield and promotes healthy growth of crops but also plays a vital role in their development. Fertilisers contain nitrogen which acts as a growth booster and phosphorus which quickens seed and root development, he said.
Federal Minister for National Food Security and Research Sikandar Hayat Bosan while addressing a press conference in April said that there would be no shortage of agricultural inputs during Kharif. The availability of urea and DAP would be normal, he said. He further stated that surplus stocks of fertilizer would be available because several fertilizer plants have started production following improvement in gas supply after RLNG injection into the system.