Explained: What is liquid nano urea, produced by IFFCO, which can potentially revolutionize the use of nitrogen fertilizers in India?

What is the News?

The Prime Minister has officially inaugurated the country’s first liquid nano urea plant at Kalol, Gujarat.

What is Liquid Nano Urea?

It is essentially urea in the form of a nanoparticle. Urea is chemical nitrogen fertilizer, white in colour which artificially provides nitrogen, a major nutrient required by plants.

Purpose: It has been developed to reduce the burden of urea subsidy, reduce the unbalanced and indiscriminate use of conventional urea, increase crop productivity and reduce soil, water, and air pollution.

Developed by: Indian Farmers Fertilizer Cooperative (IFFCO)’s Nano Biotechnology Research Center(NBRC) at Kalol.

What are the advantages of Liquid Nano Urea over Conventional Urea?

Higher Efficiency: While conventional urea has an efficiency of about 25%, the efficiency of liquid nano urea can be as high as 85-90%. 

Gets Directly absorbed by plant: Conventional urea fails to have the desired impact on crops as it is often applied incorrectly and the nitrogen in it is vaporized or lost as a gas. On the other hand, liquid nano urea is sprayed directly on the leaves and gets absorbed by the plant. 

Higher Shelf Life: Liquid nano urea has a shelf life of a year and farmers need not be worried about “caking” when it comes in contact with moisture.

No Burden of Urea Subsidy: Liquid nano urea produced by IFFCO comes in a half-litre bottle priced at Rs 240, and carries no burden of subsidy currently. By contrast, a farmer pays around Rs 300 for a 50-kg bag of heavily subsidized urea.

Source: The post is based on the article “Explained: What is liquid nano urea, produced by IFFCO, which can potentially revolutionize the use of nitrogen fertilizers in India?” published in Indian Express on 1st June 2022.