Ensure uninterrupted supply of fertilisers to TN, CM urges PM

Tamil Nadu Chief Minister C Joseph Vijay has urged Prime Minister Narendra Modi to ensure an uninterrupted supply of fertilisers for the 2026 Kharif season due to a reported shortfall.

Tamil Nadu Chief Minister C Joseph Vijay on Tuesday urged Prime Minister Narendra Modi to ensure an uninterrupted supply of fertilisers, especially urea and DAP, to the state for the 2026 Kharif season.

Seeking the early intervention of the Prime Minister, Vijay said necessary instructions should be issued to ensure that the shortfall in fertilisers was made good immediately.

''Kindly instruct the authorities concerned to supply the required quantity to meet the demand for the rest of Kharif, 2026, which is 3.83 lakh MT of urea, 1.05 lakh MT of DAP and 0.83 lakh MT of MOP,'' the chief minister said in a letter addressed to Modi.

Stating that there was a shortfall in the supply of fertilisers by the manufacturers during April and May 2026, Vijay said Tamil Nadu was an agrarian state and agriculture provided livelihood to more than 40 per cent of the population.

The Gross Cultivated Area is 62.25 lakh hectares and the net sown area is 48.27 lakh hectares. About 92 per cent of the total farmers are small marginal farmers who possess land holdings less than 2 hectares. ''Tamil Nadu is endowed with 3 per cent of the water resources in India and has diversified cropping system which includes paddy, millets, oilseeds, cotton, sugarcane, vegetables, flowers, fruits, medicinal and aromatic crops, spices and condiments, plantation crops etc.,'' the chief minister said.

During his review of the agriculture department, it emerged that fertiliser manufacturers have not supplied fertilisers as per the Government of India supply plan for April and May 2026. A total quantity of 39,001 MT of urea, 28,607 MT of Diammonium phosphate (DAP) and 24,235 MT of Muriate of Potash (MOP) was not supplied in the last two months as per the supply plan and there has been a shortfall in the supply, he said.

The agricultural activities were in full swing in the state. The IMD has forecast the onset of Southwest Monsoon in the third week of May. There was great enthusiasm among the farmers to cultivate maximum area during Kharif season and concomitantly the demand for fertilisers, especially urea and DAP is likely to increase in the ensuing months.

''Shortage of fertilisers at this crucial juncture will prove costly for the food security of the state,'' the chief minister said in the letter and requested the Prime Minister to issue necessary instructions to ensure that the shortfall in fertilisers was made good immediately.