COURTESY HT NOV 14

Urea shortage forces Sangrur farmers to turn to Haryana
Avtar Singh

avtar.singh1@htlive.com

SANGRUR : With goods trains suspended due to farmers’ agitation against agriculture laws, farmers have been purchasing urea from neighbouring Haryana amid ‘shortage’ of the fertiliser in Punjab. Farmers from Lehragaga, Sunam and Bhawanigarh blocks are buying from Jakhal and other towns near the border. Haryana’s fertiliser dealers have started refusing more supply to urea to Punjab farmers amid ‘strict orders’ and demand for fertiliser in Haryana too.

Sangrur is facing 80% shortage in urea supply amid the wheat sowing season. The district cultivates wheat crop on 2.9 lakh hectare, which require about 1.15 lakh tonne (MT) urea, but currently, only 25,000 tonne is in stock. Tirath Singh, of Namol village in Sunam block, said their joint family cultivates 22 acre and they purchased 200 bags of urea from Jakhal.

“We had to travel 120km to purchase urea as the wheat crop requires the fertiliser next week. We bought each bag in Rs 270, which sells at Rs 265 in Punjab. One acre wheat crop needs three bags,” he added.

Another farmer who did not want to be identified said that he along with his friends bought 150 bags of urea from Jakhal as there was shortage in Sangrur district. Farmers were carrying urea from Haryana with the help of their local dealers.

Sanjay Mittal, a fertiliser dealer from Jakhal, said, “There are strict orders not to sell urea to Punjab farmers as our demand in our state is also rising.” Sangrur chief agriculture officer Jaswinder Pal Singh Grewal said farmers near the border were purchasing urea from Haryana. “Farmers, hailing from, Sunam, Lehragaga, Moonak and Bhawanigarh are purchasing Urea from Haryana. However, farmers are free to buy urea from any part of India. It is completely legal to buy and sell urea from Haryana.