In a step to boost fertiliser production in India, Prime minister Narendra Modi will inaugurate a fertiliser plant in Telanagana’s Ramagundam on Saturday.
Incidentally, PM Modi laid the foundation stone for the Ramagundam Project on August 7, 2016.
Since 2014, PM Modi has taken special efforts for the revival of fertiliser plants lying closed for many years. PM Modi’s vision of achieving urea self-sufficiency is the driving force behind the revival of plants across the country.
In December 2021, PM Modi dedicated to the nation the Gorakhpur fertiliser plant, whose foundation stone was also laid by him on July 22, 2016. This plant had been closed for more than 30 years when it was reopened and rebuilt at a cost of approximately ₹8,600 crores.
Last month, in October, the Barauni Plant of Hindustan Urvarak & Rasayan Limited (HURL) also commenced urea production. The government had mandated HURL to revive the Barauni plant with an estimated investment of more than ₹8,300 crore and a urea production capacity of 12.7 LMTPA.
On May 25, 2018, PM Modi laid the groundwork for the revival of the Sindri fertiliser project of HURL. It is also expected to be commissioned shortly.
Similarly, PM Modi also laid the foundation stone for the revival of the Talcher fertiliser project on September 22, 2018. This plant is based on coal gasification technology and is expected to be commissioned in 2024.
After the operationalization of all these urea plants, India will add 63.5 lakh metric tonnes (LMT) per annum of urea, leading to a reduction in the import of urea. They will significantly contribute to the achievement of aatmanirbharta in urea production.
Since taking office in 2014, PM Modi has prioritised increasing indigenous fertiliser production and timely fertiliser supply to farmers.
The government notified the New Urea Policy, 2015, for the existing 25 gas-based urea units to maximise indigenous urea production; promote energy efficiency in urea production and rationalise the subsidy burden on the government.
The implementation of NUP-2015 has led to additional production from the existing gas-based urea units, due to which the actual production of urea has increased significantly.