New Delhi: All India Kissan Sabha (AIKS) has condemned the sharp hike in fertiliser prices and has termed it as an ‘attack on farmers’.
In a statement to Ziraat Times, the farmer Sabha said that the ‘central government has just before Kharif season allowed a free hand to fertiliser companies to hike prices of key fertilisers.’
The hike in prices of Di-Ammonium Phosphate (DAP) is as high as 58 per cent from Rs.1200/- per bag of 50 Kilograms to Rs.1900/-.
According to reports the prices of Nitrogen Phosphorous Potassium (NPK) have risen by 52 per cent or an increase of Rs.615/- per bag from around 1175/- per bag to Rs.1790/- per bag. Prices of Potash have risen by Rs.850/- per bag almost doubling from around Rs.875/- per bag in May, 2020 to Rs.1725/- per bag and that of Ammonium Phosphate Sulphate (APS) have risen by Rs.425/- per bag, i.e., from aboutRs.925/- per bag to about Rs.1,350/- per bag or about 46 percent increase.
“The increasing prices of diesel have already led to an exorbitant increase in irrigation costs and costs of tilling using tractors and tillers. The Government has also stubbornly refused to accept farmers demand of fixing MSP at least 50 per cent more than Cost of Production (C2+50%) despite increasing input costs making agriculture unviable.”, the statement said.
“The fraud played on the farmers by the Government who are advertising in a big way that Rs.2000/- has been transferred to the banks of 8.69 crore farmers under PM-KISAN has to be exposed. In fact even if one considers only DAP and that in a hectare a farmer uses 4 bags the increase in input cost is Rs.2,800/- per hectare. When increase in costs of other inputs including diesel are added one can imagine the exorbitant rise in cost of production. This increase comes at a time when peak buying of fertilisers take place for the Kharif sowing. Farmers use DAP as a primary fertiliser during sowing of different Kharif crops like paddy, cotton, groundnut etc. This exorbitant rise in prices will adversely affect the finances of the farmers, especially tenant farmers, poor and middle farmers who may have to rely on private money lenders. The BJP Government is making much show of giving Rs.2000/- under PM_KISAN. Actually while it is indulging in a farce of giving with one hand, it is taking much more with the other hand from farmers to fill the coffers of corporate fertiliser companies”, the statement added.
The All India Kisan Sabha calls for the protection of the interests of the peasantry by controlling the prices of fertilisers. Price control can alone help to keep a check on the arbitrary decisions of fertiliser companies who are indulging in profiteering in times of a pandemic and when farmers are already reeling under a crisis. AIKS calls upon all units to rise in protest by rallying all like-minded organisations.
