Fertilizer crisis and ways to cope up

Abstract

Fertilizer prices have increased tremendously during the year 2021 and 2022 due to the rising price of inputs, sanctions on Belarus and Russia after start of war, and export restrictions in China. Such price hikes have burdened the economy of India due to a huge subsidy on fertilizers and the need of foreign exchange for import of fertilizers and allied inputs. So, there is a need to incentivize the farmers to use less chemical fertilizers. Some practical ways to reduce the chemical fertilizers include promotion of green manuring in suitable agroecosystems, integration of green manuring and rock phosphate and/or SSP to reduce the use of DAP in paddy crop, recycling of agricultural wastes at farm level using vermicompost, using other sources of fertilizers such as biofertilizers, city compost, cow dung slurry etc and adoption of efficient agronomic practices to reduce the use of chemical fertilizers. Wide scale adoption of these measures will help in reducing the financial burden on the Government of India and keeping the soil, water and air healthy.