GENERAL INSTRUCTIONS OF SAMADHAN

1. Participants have to submit abstract in not more than 1000 words by 22nd August 2017,
11:59 PM.
2. The format of naming the file is - Samadhaan_TeamName.
3. Abstract has to be mailed to sankalp.naarm@gmail.com
4. Selected Teams, on the basis of their abstract, will be called for the final on-campus presentation on
29th August, 2017.
5. An extended case study will be mailed to the short listed teams.

CASE - MODEL FOR JUDICIOUS USE OF FERTILISERS

Introduction

Fertilizer consumption in India has witnessed a phenomenal increase over the past four decades. India
has attained self-sufficiency in food grain production primarily due to increase in fertilizer use along
with high yielding variety seeds, and irrigation during the period, the Indian government has passed the
food security bill in the parliament recently. This act will facilitate 62 Mt. food grains to be distributed
at a subsidised price to 74% of population every year, in this context fertilizer is needed to be given due
importance.There is a need for balanced and integrated use of micronutrients to obtain higher
productivity of food grain and other crops. To fulfil this objective congenial policy environment is
required so that the fertilizer industry is able to supply the required quantity of this vital inputs to the
farmers in a sustained manner.
Demographic pressure of a burgeoning population has kept researchers on their toes to find possible
alternatives of raising productivity per unit land area and time. On the other hand, achieving balance
between crop nutrient requirements and nutrient reserves in the soil is essential for maintaining high
yield and soil fertility, besides maintaining environmental degradation. Such an objective becomes
further difficult to accomplish due to shrinking per capita availability.

Imbalanced use of fertilizers

The manufacture, sale, and distribution of fertilizers in the country is regulated by the Ministry of
Chemicals and Fertilizers, under the Essential Commodities Act, 1955. There are three major types of
nutrients used as fertilizers: Nitrogen (N), Phosphatic (P), and Potassic (K). Of these, the pricing of urea
(containing N fertilizer) is controlled by the government, while P and K fertilizers were decontrolled in
1992, on the recommendation of a Joint Parliamentary Committee. It has been observed that urea is used
more than other fertilizers. While the recommended ratio of use of the NPK fertilizers is 4:2:1, this ratio
in India is currently at 6.7:2.4:1.6. Over use of urea is especially observed in the states of Punjab,
Haryana and Uttar Pradesh.
An imbalanced use of urea may lead to a loss of fertility in the soil over a period of time, affecting
productivity. Urea (N) is the most produced (86%), consumed (74%) and imported (52%) fertilizer in
the country. The government determines the quantity of fertilizers to be imported based on their domestic
availability. However, the process of fixing the quantity to be imported and actually receiving the imports
takes about 60-70 days, since only three companies are allowed to import urea into the country. Thus
shortages are often caused in the urea market. Since farmers have to ensure that urea is applied to their
crops on time, it leads to the growth of black markets selling urea, often at prices above the maximum
retail prices. The level of fertilizer required for a crop depends upon the soil type, level of yield, and
water availability, in addition to the type of crop. Certain crops such as rice, wheat, maize, cotton and
sugarcane require larger quantities of nitrogen as compared to pulses, fruits and vegetables. Although
the ratio of N, P, and K fertilizer usage across crops has increased, the quantity of fertilizers used by
India is still lower as compared to other countries. The average consumption of fertilizers increased from
106 kg per ha in 2005-06 to 128 kg per ha in 2012-13.

Figure below shows the trend in the consumption of fertilizers over the past decade.

Harmful effects of excess use of chemical fertilizers

Foods grown with chemical fertilizers causes various deteriorating health hazards in animals as well as
human beings.

Following are some of the effects:

Chemical residues also cause depression, insomnia, oral acetomatism, myoclonus and hyper
reflexia of man.
Accumulation of excess nitrogen in plants causes an infant disease, methaemoglobinemia
Amines produced from the nitrogenous fertilizer cause cancer in human beings
Aluminum at high levels leads to birth defects, asthama, alzeimers and bone diseases.
Calcium toxicity results in developmental and neurological toxicity, growth retardation,
cognitive delay, kidney, nervous and immune system damage.
Cobalt only at high levels leads to lung damage.
 Boron causes low sperm count, nose, throat and eye irritation. The small amounts of pesticides
that remain in the food supply will cause no immediate reaction but could cause health problems
if routinely consumed over a long period.
Manganese is suspected to damage the respiratory reproductive and gastro intestinal systems.
The excessive application of potassium fertilizers decreased vitamin c and carotene content in
vegetables, an excessive application of nitrogenous fertilizers increased the incidence of pests
and diseases in crop plants. 60 percent of all herbicides (weed killers), 90 percent of all fungicides
(mould killers) and 30 percent of all insecticides (insect killers) are potentially cancer causing. It
is therefore most necessary to reduce the dependence on chemical inputs in agriculture.

Questions

1. Who are all the stakeholders involved in Indian fertilizer industry?

2. What strategies can be used by different stakeholders of fertilizer industry to promote judicious use
of fertilizers among Indian farmers across different geographical areas?
3. How the different stakeholders involved will be benefited by judicious use of fertilizer?