Nearly 4.85 lakh raids in 2025 target black marketing, hoarding of fertilisers

As many as 4,84,663 raids were conducted across the country during 2025 against black marketing, hoarding, diversion and sale of sub‑standard fertilisers, resulting in 17,392 show‑cause notices, the government said on Tuesday.

The raids resulted in suspension or cancellation of 6,941 licences and registration of 847 FIRs, Anupriya Patel, MoS Chemicals and Fertilizers, said in the Rajya Sabha, while outlining the government's comprehensive mechanism to ensure uninterrupted fertilizer supplies and maintain affordability.

Government data showed that availability comfortably exceeded requirements for Urea, DAP, MOP and NPKS during FY 2025-26.

For that period, Urea requirement of 381 lakh metric tonnes was far exceeded by availability at 450.79. DAP requirement of 110 lakh metric tonnes was comfortably met by availability of 121.72 LMT.

The Department of Agriculture & Farmers Welfare (DA&FW) and the Department of Fertilisers work with state governments to assess month‑wise and State‑wise fertiliser requirements and allocate supplies through monthly plans.

The movement of all major subsidized fertilizers is tracked through the Integrated Fertilizer Management System (iFMS).

The government also finalises fertilizer imports well in advance to bridge the gap between domestic production and demand, coordinating with manufacturers and importers for timely supplies.

It works closely with the Ministry of Railways for priority movement of fertilizer rakes, and State Governments oversee district-level distribution, the minister said.

Fertilizers remain affordable for farmers through the Urea Subsidy Scheme and the Nutrient Based Subsidy (NBS) Scheme. Under the Urea Subsidy Scheme, the Maximum Retail Price (MRP) of a 45 kg bag of urea remains Rs 242 per bag, with the difference between the delivered cost and market realization reimbursed to manufacturers or importers as subsidy.

To keep DAP affordable at Rs 1,350 per 50 kg bag during Kharif 2026, additional support of Rs 3,500 per metric tonne has been extended over and above NBS subsidy to imported and domestic DAP and imported TSP.

The government has also taken several measures to ensure the availability of safe and quality pesticides, the minister noted.

The Registration Committee constituted under the Insecticides Act, 1968 registers pesticides only after evaluating their efficacy and safety. Insecticide Inspectors appointed by the Central and State Governments regularly collect samples from manufacturing units and retail outlets for quality testing.

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