Shortage of fertiliser deliberate to increase sale of nano-DAP: Hooda

Former Haryana chief minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda on Tuesday accused the BJP government of deliberately creating a shortage of fertiliser.

In a statement, the Congress leader said that the farmers need about 2.8 lakh tonnes of di-ammonium phosphate (DAP) every year in October-November, but this time the farmers they got only 1.20 lakh tonnes of DAP. “The government is deliberately creating a shortage of traditional DAP to increase the sale of nano DAP,” Hooda alleged.

The former CM alleged that the BJP’s aim was to push farmers into losses. “Despite being in power for 10 years, the BJP has never been able to provide farmers with adequate fertiliser on time. Farmers have to stand in queues for fertiliser,” he said.

Hooda said that it was only during the BJP rule that the fertiliser was distributed inside police stations. “But the government keeps on making false claims saying there is no shortage of fertiliser,” he added.

The former chief minister said the BJP should explain why it could not give the farmers the minimum support price (MSP) of ₹3,100 for paddy as promised. “Why did the farmers have to sell their crops at a rate lower than MSP?,” he said.