Bargarh: Agriculture sector in Bargarh district, which is known as the rice bowl of the state, is always plagued with uncertainty as farmers are hit by scarcity of urea when cultivation works pick up in the district, a report said.
Farmers were found to have completed sowing of seeds and even planting of saplings in many part of the district. However, black marketing of urea by some profit mongering traders has led to an artificial scarcity and hit the farmers hard when they need the fertilizer most to make further progress in their cultivation work. This has pushed the farmers into distress and forced them to buy them buy the fertiliser at an high rate for their cultivation works.
Observers say a packet of urea weighing 45 kg costs Rs 265. However, the profit mongering and unscrupulous traders are selling a packet of urea anything between Rs 300 to 350.
Sources said paddy is cultivated on 1,59,000 hectare of land for the Rabi season for which farmers need 24,000 mt of urea fertiliser to raise their crops. However, only 12,000 mt of urea fertiliser has reached the district. The primary agriculture cooperative societies are also facing fertiliser shortage as the district has received less than the required quantity of fertiliser.
Taking advantage of the situation, licenced sellers are allegedly selling the fertiliser to the farmers at a much higher rate than the actual market price.
A farmer Surendra Kathar of Jamtikra alleged that he purchased a packet of urea fertiliser from a trader at Rengali camp, February 9. The trader sold the packet to him at Rs 300 but did not give him any receipt.
Later, he received an SMS on his mobile phone where Rs 265 was mentioned as the price of the urea packet. Later, Kathar lodged a written complaint with the assistant agriculture officer at Atabira in this regard. A farmer Dayanidhi Karna of Godbhaga alleged that a packet of urea is being sold at Rs 350 at Atabira, Godbhaga and Larambha areas in the district.
When contacted, the chief district agriculture officer (CDAO) Dinabandhu Gandhi said an additional 12,000 mt of urea fertiliser is required for the district. However, as regard to black marketing of the fertiliser, his department will investigate the unscrupulous traders. He assured of action if any farmer files a complaint before him regarding black marketing of urea fertilizer.
PNN