Govt brings non-urea fertilisers under price control, fixes profit margins

NBS fertilisers — unlike urea, whose maximum retail price (MRP) is fixed by the government — are technically decontrolled. Under the NBS scheme, introduced in April 2010, their MRPs should be market-determined and set by the individual companies selling them. The NARENDRA Modi government has brought di-ammonium phosphate (DAP), muriate of potash (MOP) and all other such fertilisers that receive nutrient-based subsidy (NBS) support under "reasonable pricing" controls. NBS fertilisers — unlike urea, whose maximum retail price (MRP) is fixed by the government — are technically decontrolled. Under the NBS scheme, introduced in April 2010, their MRPs are supposed to be market-determined and set by the individual companies selling them. The government merely pays a fixed per-tonne subsidy on each of these fertilisers, linked to their nutrient content or specific percentage of nitrogen (N), phosphorous (P), potassium (K) and sulphur (S). But the Department of Fertilisers (DoE) has now, in an office memorandum dated January 18, issued detailed guidelines for the evaluation of the "reasonableness" of the MRPs for all non-urea fertilisers covered under NBS.