The National Academy of Agricultural Sciences, a non-governmental
organisation providing agricultural scientists a forum to Interact on
important agricultural issues, released a policy paper entitled Fertiliser
Policy Issues (2000-2025) - agricultural scilentirts perreptions - in New Delhi
on April 15,1997.
Based on a symposium held in 1996 on the use of fertilisers in
agriculture,
the paper assesses the future needs for the country, highlighting
the various
problems faced due to imbalance In the use of fertilisers and the
possible
nutrient Inputs that could be used to increase production with
minimal
environmental damage.
Expressing concern on the continuous disparity in the use of
fertilisers in
different agroclimatic zones - Punjab continues to use 176 k9 of
ferfillisers per
he while Assam uses only 13 kg per he - R S Paroda,
director-general of the
Indian Council of Agricultural Research emphasised on the need for
a national
fertiliser policy for a more uniform application of fertilisers.
Noting the poor organic matter Content of Indian soils, the paper
recommends the regular application of organic manure and recycling of
crop
residues to sustain productivity. Paroda and renowned agricultural
scientist
M S Swaminathan expressed concern at the poor health of soils in
India.
"Unless the soil health is nurtured and taken care of, we can
forget about food
security," said Swaminathan bluntly. Keeping this in mind, the
paper recom-
mends the use of blo-fertilisers, organic manurial resources,
green manuring
and the incorporation of legumes in the cropping pattern.
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