The Hindu : Front Page : Mismanagement in supply of fertilizer

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Wednesday, Sep 03, 2008
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Mismanagement in supply of fertilizer

Ramesh Susarla & P. Samuel Jonathan

Guntur district farmers up in arms; JD taken to task

Photo: T. Vijaya Kumar

PANIC SITUATION: Police trying to stop farmers from taking away fertilizer bags from ‘Gromor’ shop in Sattenapalli on Tuesday.

GUNTUR: Complete mismanagement of fertilizer distribution by the Agriculture department together with ‘zero’ supplies from manufacturers between August 12 and 26 have created a volatile situation at a time when the demand is at its peak in Guntur district that consumes 2.52 lakh tonnes -- 15 per cent of State’s quota and highest per acre in Asia.

On Tuesday, several farmers from Palnadu region broke open the ‘Gromor’ fertilizer shop in Sattenapalli and looted diammonium phosphate (DAP) before the police could intervene and bring the situation under control.

Cracking the whip, District Collector B. Venkatesham on Tuesday, sent Joint Director A. Rajaiah back to the department and appointed the DRDA Project Director I. Ramakrishna Murthy as in-charge.

Taking control of the entire fertilizer supplies, he has nominated district heads of various departments as special officers for streamlining distribution in each constituency headquarter mandal.

He expects the situation to ease when seven rail rakes with a capacity of 17,500 tonnes (Complex & DAP) will start arriving from Tuesday night.

The mishandling is evident from the fact that Tadikonda constituency alone has been supplied a whopping quantity of 6,000 tonnes (DAP and Complex for three months) by August though the major crops were cotton and chillies. On the other hand, farmers in Repalle and Mangalagiri constituency areas, who have gone in for paddy, are facing acute shortage. In some mandals, paddy saplings are turning red due to lack of DAP.

The unequal distribution of fertilizer in all areas has forced Congress MLAs to agitate on the Collector’s office premises.

Acute shortage

On the whole, a panic situation prevails among farmers as there was a shortage of 6,000 tonnes in August against the demand of 15,000 tonnes putting immense pressure on the district administration to supply DAP and other Complex fertilizers.

A few days ago, the Marketyard office building in Piduguralla was torched while road-blocks by farmers have become a routine. Farmers are receiving active support from the Telugu Desam Party and the Left.

During the early kharif season, the requirement was meagre due to late rain. Moreover, the re-plantation season in KWD and Nagarjunasagar ayacut got clubbed and the usual one-and-a-half month gap got wiped out giving rise to sudden demand in entire district.

But the official machinery has provided unequal to the challenge.

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