While Andhra Pradesh has received immediate assurances of supply along with promises of wider development support, Telangana’s appeals remain unresolved.
Published Aug 19, 2025 | 12:25 PM ⚊ Updated Aug 19, 2025 | 12:25 PM
Urea shortage in Telugu states: Andhra Pradesh receives assurance, Telangana protests shortage
Synopsis: Fertiliser shortages have emerged as a critical issue for farmers in both Andhra Pradesh and Telangana. However, the responses secured by the two states in the national capital have been entirely different. Andhra Pradesh received immediate assurances of supply along with promises of support; Telangana’s appeals remain unresolved.
As the Kharif season progresses across southern India, fertiliser shortages have emerged as a critical issue for farmers in both Andhra Pradesh and Telangana.
Shortage of urea, which plays an important role in sustaining paddy and other major crops, has become the focal point of political and administrative action in Delhi. However, the responses secured by the two states in the national capital have been entirely different.
While Andhra Pradesh has received immediate assurances of supply along with promises of wider development support, Telangana’s appeals remain unresolved, forcing its leaders into protests and raising questions about the equity of central interventions.
In the case of Andhra Pradesh, the approach to Delhi yielded quick results. On Monday, 18 August, Education, IT, and Electronics Minister Nara Lokesh met Union Minister for Health, Fertilisers and Chemicals JP Nadda to address the urgent shortage of urea that had been troubling the state’s farmers. Lokesh underlined the seriousness of the problem, noting that delays in allocation would severely affect standing crops.
The response was prompt: Nadda assured that 29,000 metric tonnes of urea would be released to Andhra Pradesh by 21 August, a measure that is expected to stabilise supply lines and provide immediate relief to farmers.
Lokesh also used the meeting to push Andhra’s broader development agenda. He proposed the establishment of a Plastic Park aimed at boosting local industry and creating jobs, particularly for the youth.
He reminded the Union Minister that one hundred acres of land had already been identified for the permanent campus of the National Institute of Pharmaceutical Education and Research in Visakhapatnam, and urged the Centre to expedite approvals and necessary actions to move the project forward.
Throughout the interaction, Lokesh reportedly emphasised the effectiveness of the “double-engine governance,” highlighting that the alignment between the state government and the Union government had been instrumental in speeding up development.
In his framing, Andhra Pradesh is on a path of accelerated progress because of this cooperative model, and the timely assurance of urea supplies has reinforced the perception that being in sync with Delhi translates into quick solutions.
While Andhra Pradesh is receiving the assurance positively, this incident might leave a sour taste in the mouths of Telangana’s leaders.
The scene in Telangana has been markedly different. On the very day Andhra Pradesh secured its allocation, Congress MPs from Telangana were staging a dharna outside Parliament, carrying placards and demanding the immediate release of urea to their state.
They alleged that, against a promise of eight lakh tonnes, only 5.32 lakh tonnes had been delivered, resulting in a shortfall of nearly three lakh tonnes. With paddy farmers requiring higher quantities of urea during the season, the shortage has created visible distress in rural areas. Despite repeated meetings between Chief Minister Revanth Reddy, Agriculture Minister Tummala Nageswara Rao and Union Minister JP Nadda over the past three months, no commitment has yet been made on the pending allocation.
MP Mallu Ravi detailed the sequence of appeals, explaining that motions had been introduced in Parliament, interventions had been made during Zero Hour, and even formal requests for meetings were pending. He warned that if the Union Minister did not meet Telangana leaders soon, MPs would escalate their agitation, even staging protests outside his office.
Several MPs noted that they were mobilising the support of others, including AIMIM representatives and non-Congress MPs, to strengthen their campaign. Yet despite these efforts, the shortage remains unresolved.
Frustration was also directed at the management of the Ramagundam fertiliser plant. MP Balram Nayak questioned why, despite being located in Telangana, its production was not adequately directed to local farmers, while administrative operations were run from Noida.
Bhongir MP C Kiran Kumar reminded that the chief minister had raised alarms in June itself, warning that delays beyond July would lead to a crisis, but the request was not acted upon.
Zahirabad MP Suresh Shetkar argued that Opposition-ruled states such as Telangana and Karnataka were being discriminated against in allocations, a charge that further politicised the issue. Other MPs asked why the eight BJP MPs from Telangana, including two Union Ministers, were not pressing the Union government to resolve the matter, accusing them of failing to represent farmers’ interests in Delhi.
With the recent allocation of a semiconductor unit for Andhra Pradesh and the recurring allegation against the centre of favouring Andhra over Telangana, this latest instance seems to serve as a showcase of the centre’s bias.
(Edited by Muhammed Fazil.)
