West Asia conflict | Fertiliser subsidy likely to surpass 1.71 lakh crore budget estimate

New Delhi: Amid rising global prices of urea and other fertilisers inputs due to ongoing West Asia crisis, the government's fertiliser subsidy bill for the 2026-27 financial year is likely to overshoot the budgeted estimate of Rs 1.71 lakh crore.

"We know that the costs have risen. Cost of both urea and other fertilisers showing an upward trend... There will surely be an increase, but as of now, cannot say,” said Aparna S Sharma, Additional Secretary, Department of Fertilisers told media persons here on Monday.

She insisted that despite supply chain disruptions caused by the regional crisis, the fertiliser availability for the kharif 2026 season remains “strong and stable”.

Domestic production in March-April totalled 67.76 lakh tonnes, comprising: Urea: 40.72 lakh tonnes, Di-Ammonium Phosphate (DAP): 5.39 lakh tonnes, NPK: 13.65 lakh tonnes and Single Super Phosphate (SSP): 8 lakh tonnes.

This was supplemented by 17 lakh tonnes of imports of fertilisers, arranged through coordinated efforts by the ministries of Ports and External Affairs.

For May, the department has set production targets of 22 lakh tonnes of urea, 4 lakh tonnes of DAP, and 8 lakh tonnes of NPK. Some urea plants that were temporarily shut have been secured with gas supply and are expected to resume operations soon.

A global tender for urea imports has already been processed, with supplies slated to arrive in May-June. The government has also floated a separate global tender for 19 lakh tonnes of NPK fertilisers to meet peak demand.

The Department of Agriculture has estimated total fertiliser requirement for kharif 2026 at 390.54 lakh tonnes. States have already stocked 195.71 lakh tonnes — nearly 50 per cent of the requirement — reflecting better planning and advance procurement.

State-wise demand has been finalised and advance stocking completed. While the Centre ensures overall availability, redistribution of fertilisers within districts will be handled by state governments.

“We are having regular meetings with states. As the season approaches, a 24x7 contingency cell will be set up to tackle redistribution issues,” Sharma added.