New Delhi, Feb 8 (PTI) Chemicals and Fertilisers Minister Mansukh Mandaviya on Tuesday said the fertiliser plant at Barauni, Bihar, which is being revived with nearly Rs 8,400 crore cost, will be commissioned in June this year.
Replying to a supplementary question in the Rajya Sabha, the minister said the joint venture to revive the Barauni plant was finalised in 2016 with an estimated project cost of Rs 8,388 crore.
Mandaviya said the foundation stone was laid in February 2019.
Giving an update on the work on Barauni plant, he pointed out that there has been a delay of 6-7 months on execution of this project.
Stating that 95 per cent work in the project has been completed, Mandaviya said the Barauni plant will be commissioned in June and dedicated to the nation.
The minister said the government had announced revival of five fertiliser plants in the country, and out of that manufacturing facilities at Ramagundam and Gorakhpur have already been commissioned.
The work on Sindri and Talcher plant is also progressing, he added.
The government had decided to revive five closed fertilizer plants of Fertilizer Corporation of India Ltd (FCIL) and Hindustan Fertilizer Corporation Ltd (HFCL).
The five public sector units under revival are: Ramagundam Fertilizers and Chemicals Ltd (RFCL), Talcher Fertilizers Limited (TFL) and Hindustan Urvarak & Rasayan Ltd (Gorakhpur, Barauni and Sindri) Asked about fertiliser subsidy, Mandaviya said the country’s urea production is 240-245 lakh tonnes annually while the demand is 300-325 lakh tonnes. The country imports 70-75 lakh tonnes urea.
To ensure that there is no shortage of fertilisers, he said the government is making efforts to boost domestic output and reducing imports. He pointed out that the country had to import urea at USD 900 per tonne this fiscal compared to USD 300-350 per tonne because of rise in global gas price.
Mandaviya said the government did not increase urea prices and making it available at Rs 266 per bag only by bearing the subsidy of Rs 2,500 per bag.
“We paid this subsidy but did not increase the burden of framers,” he said.
Similarly, the minister said, the additional subsidy was given on DAP (Di-ammonium phosphate) to ensure that farmers get the nutrient at the same price.
The total fertiliser subsidy, he said, is estimated to rise to over Rs 1.4 lakh crore this financial year.
This much of subsidy has never been given earlier, the minister asserted. PTI MJH MKJ MKJ
