Agriculture Input Policies in India: Retrospect and Prospects

Abstract

The overall objective of the study is to understand the awareness of mandatory production and distribution of Neem Coated Urea (NCU), trends in chemical fertilizer consumption (NKP) and their relation to food grain production across different periods of time and policies. An effort has also been made to understand the association between fertilizer consumption and productivity with respect to fertilizer-intensive crops. Finally, it was attempted to identify the important determinants of fertilizer consumption. The compound annual growth rate (CAGR) was calculated for analysing the trends in fertilizer consumption and food grain production in India. Further, the growth rates per hectare consumption of fertilizers vis-à-vis the growth rates of yield of fertilizer-intensive crops are calculated. Multiple regression model is applied to identify factor influencing fertilizer consumption. The study has uncovered that the general development pace of chemical fertilizer consumption in India for the period-I, was 5.58%, has diminished to 3.24% per annum for the period-II. By 2030, the fertilizer demand is projected to be around 57 million tons and is expected to grow at a faster rate, thereafter. Study focused on NCU policy of the government. The awareness level is 70 to100% in Karnataka, Bihar, Assam, Punjab Maharashtra and Madhya Pradesh. At aggregate level, 85% of farmers noticed the difference between (NCU) and (NU) by reflecting the mandatory production and distribution of Neem Coated Urea (NCU) policy is in the right direction, considering the benefits realized by the Indian farming community.