We Need To Address The Issue Of Soil Health, Pg11

Key Highlights:

• Union Minister for Agriculture and Farmers’ Welfare Shivraj Singh Chouhan launched the Khet Bachao Abhiyan (Save the Farm Campaign) on October 22 in Karnal, Haryana.
• The campaign aims to address the imbalanced use of chemical fertilizers, which is harming soil, groundwater, and air quality.
• The Nutrient-Based Subsidy (NBS) policy, introduced in 2010, has worsened the N:P:K ratio to 10.5:4.1:1 against a normative 2.8:1.5:1.
• Nitrogen overuse leads to low soil organic carbon, nitrous oxide emissions, and nitrate contamination of groundwater, while potassium deficiency impacts crop resistance and grain quality.
• The fertilizer subsidy budget for 2026-27 is projected at Rs 1.71 lakh crore, potentially rising to Rs 2.5-3 lakh crore.

Khet Bachao Abhiyan.jpg

Detailed Insights:

• The current fertilizer pricing policy, particularly for urea, diammonium phosphate (DAP), and muriate of potash (MOP), incentivizes imbalanced nutrient application.
• ICRIER research indicates that nitrogen use is 6% above recommended doses nationally, while potassium deficit has deepened from 48% to 72%.
• The price of DAP nearly tripled and MOP rose six-fold between 2010-11 and 2024-25, while urea prices increased by only 1%, making nitrogen disproportionately cheaper.
• Data from the Soil Health Card scheme in 2025-26 showed 72% of samples were low in nitrogen, 52% in organic carbon, 42% in boron, and 37% in zinc.
• Overuse of nitrogen contributes to greenhouse gas emissions, with nitrous oxide being 273 times more potent than carbon dioxide.
• Proposed solutions include shifting from input price subsidy to Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT) per hectare, leveraging AgriStack for farmer IDs.
• Expediting and fixing the PM-PRANAM scheme is crucial to reward states for balanced fertilizer use.
• Investing fertilizer subsidy savings into drip irrigation, fertigation, and product innovation like nano fertilizers and gene-edited seeds is recommended.
• Adopting the 4Rs (right source, rate, time, place) based on soil tests and reforming power pricing and procurement are also vital steps.

Key Concepts Involved:

• Nutrient-Based Subsidy (NBS): A policy introduced in 2010 to subsidize phosphatic and potassic fertilizers based on nutrient content, while urea remained under fixed pricing.
• Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT): A system where subsidies are directly transferred to beneficiaries' bank accounts, aiming to improve targeting and reduce leakages.
• AgriStack: A proposed digital ecosystem for Indian agriculture, aiming to create a unified database of farmers linked to land records and other agricultural data.
• PM-PRANAM: A scheme aimed at promoting the balanced use of fertilizers and reducing chemical fertilizer use by incentivizing states.