Bengal agriculture minister Sobhandeb Chattopadhyay on Monday said the Centre was not supplying the state with fertilisers according to the requirement of farmers ahead of the rabi (winter) season, leaving lakhs of cultivators in trouble as the demand and supply gap left them in a spot.

“We have sent a requirement of 6.72 lakh tonnes of NPK (10:26:26) — a fertiliser containing nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium — to the Centre ahead of the season. But the Centre has delivered only 70,500 tonnes of the fertiliser so far, leaving the farmers in real trouble,” said the minister at Nabanna on Monday.

The supply of NPK (10:26:26) is important for farmers, particularly for those who cultivate potatoes as the fertiliser fixes the phosphorus and potassium content in the soil and is highly effective in soil with leaching conditions. It also improves root growth and maximises plant vigour. It helps improve the number of fruits and tubers.

“As farmers in Bengal need to sow potatoes soon after the harvesting of kharif paddy, use of NPK (10:26:26) is essential for growing potatoes. The scarcity of the fertiliser hurts potato farming,” said a senior government official.

The minister said the demand and supply gap had led to a situation where the farmers were being forced to buy the fertiliser at a much higher price in some areas of the state because of malpractices of some dealers. However, the state government is trying to control the situation by initiating action against the errant dealers.

“We have showcaused more than 1,500 dealers across the state and suspended six dealers for overpricing…. The Centre has been sending less fertiliser for the past few years compared to the state’s requirement,” said Chattopadhyay.

The minister then laid down figures to establish how the Centre deprived the state of enough fertiliser over the past few years since 2020.

“In 2020-21, the state got 4.50 lakh tonnes of NPK (10:26:26) while the demand was more than 6 lakh tonnes. In 21-22, the state received 2.40 lakh tonnes while the demand was almost the same. In 2022-23, the state got 2.31 lakh tonnes but in 2023-24, we have received only 79,500 tonnes,” said the minister.

Supply of the fertiliser ahead of potato cultivation is very important for the ruling establishment in Bengal as nearly 14 lakh farmers in Hooghly, East Burdwan, Nadia Birbhum and West Midnapore invest in potato cultivation. Their votes are crucial for any political party during the next Lok Sabha polls.

The Trinamul Congress put up a good show in the 2021 Assembly polls in these districts after the debacle in the 2019 Lok Sabha polls.

“This was because the state had come forward to provide financial support to the potato farmers ahead of the 2021 Assembly polls by procuring 10 lakh tonnes of potato when they were being forced to go for distress sale because of heavy production,” said a source.

The minister rejected reports that two potato farmers had committed suicide in Hooghly and East Burdwan after crops had been damaged in untimely rain last week.