November 14: The government is running out of fertilizer stock right during the wheat-sowing season. Two of the government companies -- Salt Trading Corporation and Agricultural Inputs Company Limited -- which have been selling the fertilizers to the farmers at subsidized rates are running low stock. It is estimated that about 123,000 metric tons of fertilizers are required in this winter season for sowing wheat and for the plantation of vegetables.

The Salt Trading Corporation’s stock of fertilizers is zero, whereas the stock of Agricultural Inputs Company Limited is just 15,500 metric tons. Farmers require DAP fertilizer to sow wheat. The company has a stock of just 300 metric tons of DAP and the stock of urea is 15,000 metric tons.

Spokesperson of Salt Trading Corporation, Kumar Raj Bhandari downplayed the saying that although the companies do not have much fertilizers in stock, attempts are being made to bring in more fertilizers to avoid the shortage of fertilizers. He also added that 25,000 metric tons of DAP and urea each are being imported and are on the way already.

Meanwhile, the farmers have already become the victims of fertilizer shortage. While it is already the time to reap paddy and sow wheat, an additional problem of fertilizer shortage has burdened the farmers.

Sowing of wheat has already begun in the Terai region of Nepal. Bhuwaneshwor Yadav, a farmer from Sunsari, shared that the farmers are worried if they will have to sow the wheat without fertilizers just like how they sowed mustard. He also shared that the farmers were compelled to return empty handed from the depots of Salt Trading Corporation and the Agricultural Inputs Company.

Earlier, the farmers also had to face shortage of fertilizers during the rainy season. They are worried that the same problem would repeat again in the winter season. The outgoing chairman of the National Farmers Commission, Chitra Bahadur Shrestha said that the farmers are still in despair after the paddy crop was damaged greatly by the unseasonal rains. It would be unfortunate if they have to face shortage of fertilizer as well.

According to Shrestha, the farmers have lost hope in the government. The reason being, no matter how hard the government tries, it has never been able to get rid of the shortage of fertilizer when it is needed the most. “If chemical fertilizers are not used in the soil continuously, it might even affect the production of crops,” said Shrestha.