Kolkata, 24 July (H.S.): BJP MLA from Maynaguri, Dalim Roy, on Friday raised the issue of fertilisers being sold above the prescribed price and the practice of compulsory product tagging during the West Bengal Assembly session. He alleged that farmers are being forced to pay significantly more than the Maximum Retail Price (MRP) due to unfair practices by some fertiliser companies.

Roy's allegations were supported by Siddhartha Sarkar, Vice-President of the Jalpaiguri District Fertiliser Dealers' Association, who admitted that some companies are charging distributors higher prices than the printed rates. As a result, distributors pass on the increased cost to retailers, ultimately forcing farmers to pay more.

According to the allegations, a bag of urea, officially priced at ₹266.50, is being sold along with Nano Urea as a compulsory tagged product. This raises the effective purchase cost for farmers to nearly ₹500. Similarly, Liquid DAP is allegedly being tagged with a bag of DAP priced at ₹1,350, increasing the cost by nearly ₹650.

Speaking in the Assembly, Dalim Roy said he represents a rural constituency in North Bengal where fertiliser consumption is high. He alleged that wholesalers are being charged more than the price printed on fertiliser bags, resulting in inflated prices across the supply chain.

Siddhartha Sarkar said the MLA is well aware of the issue as he has experience in the fertiliser trade. He claimed that some companies exploit the high demand for certain fertilisers by forcing distributors to purchase additional products through compulsory tagging.

Both Roy and the fertiliser dealers' association urged the authorities to ensure that fertilisers are sold strictly at the prescribed prices and that the practice of forced tagging is discontinued in the interest of farmers.

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Hindusthan Samachar / Priyanka Pandey