[Answered] How far do you think the draft Integrated Plant Nutrition Management Bill, 2022 will revolutionize the fertilizer sector?

India is the 2nd largest consumer and 3rd largest producer of fertilizers in the world. The Union Government has come up with a Draft Integrated Plant Nutrition Management Bill 2022 to regulate the fertilizer supply chain in India and to ensure balanced use of plant nutrients.

How the draft bill seeks to revolutionize the fertilizer sector.

• Nutrition Management Authority of India (NMAI): It seeks to establish an ‘Integrated Plant NMAI, a technical body. It will oversee registration of fertilizer manufacturers, lay down quality standards, incentivize developing innovative products, and ensure balanced and sustainable use of plant nutrients.
• Fixing maximum selling price: It will empower central government to fix the maximum selling price of fertilizers and control its quality as well as distribution.
• Sustainable use of Fertilizer: It will promote the development and sustainable use of balanced fertilizers, including bio-fertilizers, bio-stimulates, nano-fertilizers, and organic fertilizers.
• Simplification of process: It seeks to simplify the process for the manufacture, production, distribution, and price management of fertilizers in India. It will improve the ease of doing business.
• Empowering the Centre: It proposes to empower the Centre to fix different prices or rates for fertilisers having different periods of storage or for different areas or for different classes of consumers. The Central government can also prescribe the manner in which fertilizers are to be moved from one state to another.

Following are the major concerns related to the draft bill.

• Better alternative: The use of plant nutrients by farmers is influenced mostly by their prices, which are determined by the subsidies the government offers on different fertilizers, which is evident by the over-use of urea. This imbalance may be corrected by rationalizing subsidies.
• Inspector Raj: Bill focused on tightening the already pervasive government controls over the fertilizer sector, by setting up an elaborate Inspector Raj to oversee it.
• Complicate fertilizer pricing: It empowers the Centre to cap the maximum selling prices for fertilizers, while allowing it to fix different prices for different regions and customers. Which would further complicate already complicated pricing structure in fertilizer sector.
• Traditional plant nourishment products: Through the bill government is attempting to regulate traditional plant nourishment products such as “Pachgavya Krishi” and “Amritpani”. Bringing these products at this stage seems unnecessary.
• Excessive Government control: The Integrated Plant Nutrition Management Authority of India, State Controllers and Inspectors, have been given overarching powers which creates unnecessary bureaucratization.

Indian fertilizer sector needs a revolution to address the challenges posed by the present fertilizer usage and supply chain. The draft bill is a good step in the right direction; however, its concerns must be addressed in consultation with the stakeholders to achieve the intended benefits.