Balanced fertilisation

Indian Economy glossary

Also called: Balanced use of fertilisers, NPK balance · Topic: Land Reforms, the Green Revolution and Farm Subsidies · NCERT: Beyond NCERT

Meaning

Balanced fertilisation means giving the soil nitrogen (N), phosphorus (P), potassium (K), secondary nutrients such as sulphur (S), and micronutrients such as zinc and iron in the amounts and proportions that the soil and the crop actually need. Ideally those amounts are decided by a soil test. It matters because overusing one nutrient while ignoring others damages soil health and makes crop yields stop rising. It is the stated core aim of the Nutrient Based Subsidy (NBS) scheme.

  • Benchmark: the ideal NPK ratio (the ratio of N to P to K applied to the soil) is about 4:2:1.

Explanation

How it works

  • Each nutrient does a different job. Adding more of one cannot make up for a shortage of another.
  • If a soil lacks K or sulphur, extra urea (N) adds little to the harvest.

  • The farmer spends more, but the yield hardly rises. This is called flat yield response.

  • The HYV link. NCERT says that for high-yielding variety (HYV) seeds, applying inputs "in correct proportions is vital" (Class 11, Indian Economy 1950–1990). HYVs need more nutrients from the soil, so imbalance hurts them sooner.

  • Soil test first, dose second. Balance is different for every field. Soil Health Cards (2015) give each field a nutrient-based fertiliser recommendation. This turns "balance" into an actual dose for that farm.

Components

Group Nutrients Common sources
Primary nutrients N, P, K Urea (N); DAP, SSP (P); MOP (K)
Secondary nutrients Sulphur (and others) Ammonium Sulphate, SSP, sulphur products
Micronutrients Zinc, iron, etc. Needed in small amounts but often deficient
  • DAP = Di-Ammonium Phosphate; SSP = Single Superphosphate; MOP = Muriate of Potash.

Worked example (illustrative numbers)

  • Farm A applies 80 kg N, 40 kg P and 20 kg K per hectare.

  • Ratio = 80 : 40 : 20 = 4 : 2 : 1. This is balanced.

  • Farm B applies 80 kg N, 20 kg P and 5 kg K, because urea is cheap and P and K bags are costly.

  • Ratio = 80 : 20 : 5 = 16 : 4 : 1. This is heavily tilted towards N.
  • Farm B uses the same amount of N as Farm A but gets a weaker yield. The soil loses P and K faster, which is called soil mining.

What makes balance worse or better

  • Worse: the gap between prices.
  • Urea is sold at a statutory MRP (a price fixed by the government), and it is outside NBS.
  • P and K prices are decontrolled and move with world prices.

  • So urea stays cheap while P and K bags get costlier, and farmers use more N.

  • Worse: cheap inputs send the wrong signal. NCERT's Box 2.6 says cheap fertiliser leads to overuse, which harms the environment.

  • Worse: high P&K prices. In its 2014 reply to the CAG, the Department of Fertilizers itself accepted that rising fertiliser prices were a cause of imbalanced fertiliser use.
  • Better: soil testing, a separate subsidy for sulphur, cheaper alternatives to P and K products, and lower overuse of urea.

In India

  • The problem.
  • India's NPK use is heavily tilted towards nitrogen because urea is cheap (verify current ratio).

  • Heavy N use, with little P, K or organic matter, has caused zinc, sulphur and iron deficiencies and flat yield response, especially in the rice-wheat belt.

  • The policy tool: NBS (from 1 April 2010).

  • NBS is run by the Department of Fertilizers, Ministry of Chemicals and Fertilizers.
  • It pays a fixed subsidy per kg of nutrient (N, P, K, S) on 28 grades of P&K fertilisers.

  • Rates are set twice a year, for Kharif and Rabi.

  • Rabi 2026-27 rates (₹ per kg): N 94.21 · P 66.11 · K 2.38 · S 10.42.

  • Outlay: about ₹62,370.02 crore.

  • Steps aimed at balance:

  • a separate per-kg rate for sulphur;
  • freight subsidy for SSP, as a cheaper option than DAP;
  • Ammonium Sulphate promoted as an alternative to urea;

  • a Sulphur package for domestic manufacturers only, paying 20% of actual procurement cost, subject to a floor price.

  • Measures that support NBS:

  • Soil Health Cards (2015);
  • neem-coated urea, fully mandated in 2015, which releases N slowly and stops urea being diverted to industry;
  • nano urea from IFFCO (2021), whose efficacy is debated;

  • PM-PRANAM (2023), which rewards states that cut chemical fertiliser use.

  • The gap. The CAG audit of 2010-11 to 2013-14 (Report No. 16 of 2015) found that NBS had no clear road-map for reaching balanced fertiliser use. The Rabi 2026-27 release still gives balance only as an aim. It sets no target ratio and no deadline.

Don't confuse with

  • Nutrient Based Subsidy (NBS): NBS is the instrument, a per-kg subsidy on P&K nutrients. Balanced fertilisation is the goal NBS is meant to serve.
  • Integrated nutrient management / organic farming: these mix chemical fertilisers with manure and bio-inputs, or replace them. Balanced fertilisation is only about getting the right proportions of nutrients, from any source.
  • Neem-coated urea / nano urea: these improve the efficiency of one nutrient, N. They do not fix the ratio between N, P and K by themselves.
  • Reducing fertiliser use (PM-PRANAM): this aims to cut the total amount used. Balance is about proportion. A soil short of K may need more K, not less fertiliser overall.

Prelims Hooks

  • Ideal NPK ratio: 4:2:1. India's actual use is heavily tilted towards N.
  • Urea is outside NBS. NBS (2010) covers only decontrolled P&K fertilisers, with subsidy on N, P, K and S.
  • NBS is run by the Department of Fertilizers (Ministry of Chemicals and Fertilizers), not the Agriculture Ministry.
  • Rabi 2026-27: K has the lowest per-kg rate (₹2.38) and N the highest (₹94.21).
  • Soil Health Card (2015) gives the field-level recommendation that turns balanced fertilisation into an actual dose.
  • Trap: "The Sulphur package subsidises sulphur imports." FALSE. It covers domestic manufacturers only.

Mains Points

  • Why NBS cannot balance soil use while urea stays outside it.
  • Urea's price is fixed, while P&K prices follow world markets.
  • So the price gap keeps pushing farmers towards N.
  • The very low K rate (₹2.38/kg) does little to encourage potash use.

  • Reform has to bring urea's price into the same nutrient-based calculation.

  • Price tools need soil data and a road-map.

  • The CAG found NBS had no road-map for its goals.
  • The Department should publish state-wise target ratios with yearly milestones.

  • These should be linked to Soil Health Card data, with PM-PRANAM handling demand while NBS handles price.

  • Sustainability and the Evergreen Revolution.

  • Imbalance causes soil mining, micronutrient deficiency and flat yields in Punjab-Haryana.
  • Balanced fertilisation, together with crop rotation (for example, legumes), micro-irrigation and precision farming, is central to "productivity in perpetuity without ecological harm" (M.S. Swaminathan).

Read more