Department of Fertilizers
Also called: DoF · Topic: Land Reforms, the Green Revolution and Farm Subsidies · NCERT: Beyond NCERT
Meaning
The Department of Fertilizers (DoF) is a department of the Ministry of Chemicals and Fertilizers. It runs India's fertiliser subsidy system. It handles the Nutrient Based Subsidy (NBS) scheme for P and K fertilisers (phosphorus and potassium, such as DAP and MOP) and the separate urea regime, where the government fixes a statutory MRP (maximum retail price). The subsidy is paid to fertiliser companies at notified rates, and farmers gain because they pay a lower price. Since 2018, under DBT in fertilisers, companies get the subsidy only after point-of-sale machines record a sale to a farmer.
Example
For Rabi 2026-27 (1 October 2026 to 31 March 2027), the Union Cabinet approved NBS rates with a tentative outlay of ₹62,370.02 crore. The money covers 28 grades of P&K fertilisers. The Cabinet approves the rates, and the Department of Fertilizers pays the companies and oversees the scheme. In its 2015 audit of NBS, the CAG found that the DoF had no system to check whether the MRPs set by companies were reasonable.
Don't confuse with
- Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare: it runs farm schemes such as PM-KISAN and Soil Health Cards. It does not run the fertiliser subsidy. That job belongs to the DoF under the Ministry of Chemicals and Fertilizers.