DOF plans to enhance urea production to 300 LMT by 2011-12

New Delhi, Nov 7 (UNI) To ensure the food security of the country, Department of Fertilizers (DOF) plans to raise the production of urea from the present installed capacity of 197 lakh metric tonnes (LMT) to 300 LMT by the end of 11th Five year Plan. In addition, domestic foodgrain production has been set at 320 million tonnes by 2011-12 from the present production of 210 million tonnes.

Addressing the Annual Economic Editors' Conference 2006, Chemicals and Fertilizers Minister Ram Vilas Paswan today informed that the demand for urea during 2005-06 was assessed at 234.25 LMT, the cumulative availability at 239.78 LMT and sales at 221.91 LMT.

In respect of DAP, the demand was 78.06 LMT against the availability of 86.38 LMT and cumulative sale was 67.51 LMT.

He said as regards MOP, the demand assessment was 28.88 LMT, availability was 55.22 LMT and sales at 9.99 LMT.

In the current year, demand of urea during Kharif, 2006 was 122.37 LMT against the availability of 125.04 LMT and sales of 113.65 LMT.

For DAP, during for Kharif was 33.10 LMT, the availability was 48.67 LMT and sales was 32.06 LMT, while in respect of MOP, the demand was 14.66 LMT, the availability was estimated at 20.47 and sales at 9.99 LMT.

Giving details of demand, availability and the sales of fertilizers, the Minister made it clear that the Government had provided the fertilizers to a maximum comfortable level, but fault was with the State Government and the nodal agencies in distribution of the product. The sales figures remained much lower than the stocks provided to them.

Mr Paswan said that in respect of Rabi 2006-07, the demand for urea, DAP and MOP is estimated at 127.08 LMT, 48.19 LMT and 18.57 LMT respectively. The DOF has made plans for ensuring availability at the level of 149.39 LMT of urea, 50.37 LMT of DAP and 26.31 LMT of MOP.

The availability during the year 2006-07 is being augmented substantially through imports of over 52 LMT of urea, 27.16 LMT of DAP and 26.98 LMT of MOP, he added.

The Minister said the Government has taken certain steps with a long term perspective which would result in reduction in subsidy expenditure in fertilizers in the years to come.

The requirement of subsidy on all fertilizers during 2005-06 was Rs 20,475.78 crore, which is expected to rise to a level of Rs 27,000 crore in 2006-07. The rise in subsidy expenditure has been mainly on account of rise in the prices of feedstock and raw materials and increasing consumption levels of fertilizers.

However, the government has kept the farmers protected from these rising input costs by keeping the MRP/indicate MRPs of fertilizers unchanged for the last four years and subsidising the sale of chemical fertilizers in the interest of food security of the country and promoting growth in agriculture and food grain production.

The Government is carrying out reforms in the delivery mechanism of fertilizers. A Fertilizer Monitoring System which will track the movement of de-controlled fertilizers as also production, distribution and sales of all fertilizers under the Concession Scheme is proposed to be activated from December 1, 2006. The same system will also monitor the dispatch of urea of each State, district-wise.

Mr Paswan said the Government is in an advanced stage of preparing a concrete action plan for revival of sick and closed units which will lead to an additional urea capacity of about 60 lakh tonnes and remove the existing existing disparity with regard to production and availability of urea.

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