Bhubaneswar: Alleging that Odisha’s BJP government has failed to meet the fertiliser requirement of farmers, the Opposition BJD Friday said it will stage a protest near Raj Bhavan September 15.
The BJD’s announcement came a day after Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi claimed that there was no shortage of fertiliser for the ongoing Kharif crop cultivation in Odisha.
BJD vice-president Sanjay Das Burma and Opposition Chief Whip Pramila Mallik, at a press conference in Bhubaneswar, however, rejected the Chief Minister’s claim and alleged that the state government was “misleading” the farmers, who constitute 70 per cent of the state’s population.
“We are demanding immediate supply of fertiliser to the farmers as they need it now. Any further delay in fertiliser supply would adversely affect the kharif crop,” Das Burma said.
The fertiliser supplied by the government is not in an adequate amount, he said.
The CMO on Thursday in a statement had claimed that Odisha required a total of 9,55,000 metric tons of fertilisers for the 2025 Kharif season (by September 30), and this entire quantity was allocated by the central government.
Alleging that the state government’s repeated claim that fertiliser stocks are sufficient is “false”, Das Burma said a shortfall was reported in various districts. Citing instances, he said that while Ganjam district submitted an indent of 19,561 MT of fertiliser, but it got only 10,640 MT.
While Bhadrak district sought 6,188 MT of fertiliser, it was supplied only 863 MT. Similarly, Balasore district demanded 2,600 MT and got only 900 MT, and Angul also received only 4.954 MT against its demand of 8,100 MT of fertilizer, the BJD said in a statement.
“There is a huge gap between the demand and supply of fertiliser across the state,” Das Burma said, adding that the farmers have now hit the streets and are blocking highways across the state to protest the shortage, even as the Chief Minister claims “no fertilizer crisis” in Odisha.
Opposition chief whip Pramila Mallik alleged that the fertiliser crisis has deepened in Odisha due to the “careless” attitude of the BJP government.
“Former Chief Minister and Leader of the Opposition Naveen Patnaik had written a letter to the Union Minister of Chemicals and Fertilisers J P Nadda and sought his intervention. But no follow-up action is taken, leading to such a situation,” Mallik said.
Mallik recalled that about seven years ago, the work of the Talcher fertiliser plant was started by the central government, and then it was promised that the factory would be functional in 36 months. However, even after more than seven years, the plant has not become functional, she pointed out, holding the centre responsible for the fertiliser crisis.
“It has been the habit of the BJP to capture power by making false promises. Therefore, BJD will raise its voice in the interest of the farmers. On September 15, the Biju Janata Dal will stage a protest in front of the Raj Bhavan demanding an immediate solution to the fertilizer problem,” she said, adding that the party may later extend the agitation to the block level if the demands are not fulfilled.
PTI