On Wednesday, July 30, Karnataka Agriculture Minister N Chaluvarayaswamy appealed to the Union government to supply 1.36 lakh metric tonnes of the fertiliser that is yet to be paid, and the shortfall needs to be met by Thursday, July 31, during protests by the BJP on the shortage of fertiliser for the farmers of the state.
In a news conference, Chaluvarayaswamy stated: “By July-end, 1.36 lakh metric tonnes of urea is due from the Union government. Providing urea fertiliser is their duty. We only do the distribution. If they send the dues by tomorrow, we will immediately start the distribution.”
In addition, Chaluvarayaswamy described that early and copious rains and increased maize cultivation by 2 lakh hectares had led to increased demand for urea. Adding that, can we ask farmers about the reason behind growing more maize?
Furthermore, he asserted: “Ashoka has alleged that goods go to Sri Lanka and then to Bangladesh. I don’t know about his intelligence level. Who controls the borders? Is he indirectly asking Modi or Amit Shah?? Whenever some information comes, farmers get into panic mode. Remarks by opposition leaders are triggering such comments.”
He stated that the state government has not diminished the fund allocation for fertilisers as claimed by the BJP. “We have continued with the allocation of Rs 400 crore, same as the BJP government’s. We are ready to offer Rs 600 crore more and BJP leaders should ensure fertiliser supplies,” he said.
While acknowledging that there had been a shortage of urea in a few districts, such as Davanagere, Gadag, Koppal, Dharwad and Yadgir, the minister cited that it could be compensated by utilising extra stock from other districts. Notably, he notified about his meeting with Union Agriculture Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan on July 7 and urged him to provide chemical fertilisers concerning Diammonium Phosphate (DAP) & Urea. Additionally, he said that he would try to meet the Union Fertilisers Minister JP Nadda and inform him about the situation of the state and ask for the outstanding dues to be paid.