10 % more Urea provided to State: Union Min Jena

BHUBANESWAR: Following the allegation made by Agriculture Minister Devi Prasad Mishra against the Centre for inadequate and erratic supply of fertilisers to the State, Union Minister of State for Chemicals and Fertilisers Srikant Jena on Wednesday clarified that his Government has provided about 10 per cent more Urea to the State during the kharif than last year.

Jena in a Press release said the availability of urea from February to September 16 and estimated supply for the rest of the period till September 30 shall be 4.86 lakh MT as compared to 4.42 lakh MT during the corresponding period last year.

It may be noted that Mishra made the allegation on the backdrop of the assessment report given by OUAT agricultural scientists. In a press conference, Mishra blamed the Centre for inadequate and erratic supply of fertilisers to the State for which the rice production would be less than 15 per cent of the productivity during the Kharif crop.

According to a senior agricultural officer, the fertiliser given by the centre was used in rabi crop and the centre should provide fertilisers for the kharif as the demand is high here.        

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