A farmer sprays fertiliser on his field in Vemulapally village near Miryalguda, Nalgonda District. File
| Photo Credit: Nagara Gopal
The Centre has decreased fertiliser subsidies, apparently hoping that the improving situation in Ukraine and increased domestic production will help in managing the situation. The Fertilisers and Chemicals Ministry has been claiming that the increase in domestic production of essential fertilisers such as urea will result in decreasing fertiliser subsidies.
Allocation for the Fertilisers Department in this Budget is ₹1,64,150.81 crore. It was ₹1,75,148.48 crore in the last Budget. In the Revised Estimates of the last financial year, it was ₹1,88,947.29 crore. The amount actually used in 2022-23 was ₹2,51,369.18 crore, with payments for indigenous and imported urea estimated to have accounted for the bulk of the expenditure.
Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman announced in the Budget that after the successful adoption of Nano Urea, application of Nano Di Ammonium Phosphate (Nano DAP) on various crops will be expanded to all agro-climatic zones. She said the pandemic had led to a crisis of food, fertiliser, fuel and finances for the world, while India successfully navigated its way. “The country showed the way forward and built consensus on solutions for those global problems,” she said.
Welcoming the budgetary allocation, Union Fertilisers Minister Mansukh Mandaviya said the Narendra Modi government is revolutionising the face of Indian agriculture. “The expansion of the application of Nano DAP on various crops, announced in the Budget will encourage sustainable farming. It will also help in making India Aatmanirbhar [self-reliant] in fertilisers,” he said thanking the Finance Minister for the expansion of the application of Nano DAP on various crops.
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Food subsidy sees increase
Food subsidy has seen an increase in the allocation compared to the last year. The total food subsidy includes ₹2,05,250 crore for the Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Anna Yojana (PM-GKAY) and ₹1 lakh crore for the Sugar Subsidy payable under Public Distribution System. In the last Budget, the amount was 1,97,350 crore, while in 2022-23, the actual expenditure was ₹2,72,802.38 crore.
Ms. Sitharaman said the worries about food have been eliminated through free ration for 80 crore people. “Minimum support prices for the produce of ‘Annadata’ [food providers or farmers] are periodically increased appropriately. These and the provision of basic necessities have enhanced real income in the rural areas. Their economic needs could be addressed, thus spurring growth and generating jobs,” she said.