Govt weighing direct fertiliser subsidy transfer to farmers, says minister
This story was originally published at 17:16 IST on 24 February 2026
Register to read our real-time news.Informist, Tuesday, Feb. 24, 2026
NEW DELHI – The Centre is examining a proposal to transfer the fertiliser subsidy directly into farmers' bank accounts, Agriculture Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan said Tuesday.
Speaking at the Business Standard Manthan event here, Chouhan said consultations on the proposal are underway. "We are already working on it, taking inputs from farmers," the minister said about the possible shift in the subsidy delivery mechanism. "I also ask for a larger public debate on this."
Currently, fertiliser subsidies are routed to manufacturers, enabling farmers to purchase urea and phosphatic and potassic fertilisers at government-controlled or subsidised rates. A move to directly transfer the subsidy into farmers' accounts would represent a significant structural reform aimed at stopping the diversion of subsidised fertilisers for industrial use.
The deliberations come against the backdrop of the rising fertiliser subsidy burden. The Centre's fertiliser subsidy bill has been increasing steadily and even overshot the 2025-26 (Apr-Mar) Budget estimate by over INR 185 billion. The Budget for FY26 had provided INR 1.68 trillion towards fertiliser subsidy, including INR 1.19 trillion for urea and Rs 490 billion for other nutrients. However, the revised estimate presented by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman has placed the total outgo at INR 1.86 trillion, comprising INR 1.26 trillion for urea and INR 600 billion for other fertilisers.
For FY27, the Union Budget has pegged the total fertiliser subsidy at INR 1.71 trillion, with INR 1.17 trillion earmarked for urea and INR 540 billion for other fertilisers. End
Reported by Pallavi Singhal
Edited by Rajeev Pai
For users of real-time market data terminals, Informist news is available exclusively on the NSE Cogencis WorkStation.
Cogencis news is now Informist news. This follows the acquisition of Cogencis Information Services Ltd. by NSE Data & Analytics Ltd., a 100% subsidiary of the National Stock Exchange of India Ltd. As a part of the transaction, the news department of Cogencis has been sold to Informist Media Pvt. Ltd.
Informist Media Tel +91 (22) 6985-4000
Send comments to feedback@informistmedia.com
© Informist Media Pvt. Ltd. 2026. All rights reserved.
To read more please subscribe
Share this Story:
