India allocates 62,370.02 crore rupees to support fertilisers for the 2026-27 Rabi season
Key Facts
India’s Cabinet on November 11, 2026, approved subsidy rates for phosphatic and potassic fertilisers for the 2026-27 Rabi season, with an estimated budgetary cost of 62,370.02 crore rupees. The Ministry of Chemicals and Fertilisers said the allocation aims to make fertilisers available to farmers at affordable prices, as subsidies are adjusted to track fertiliser and input prices in international markets. The decision covers fertilisers including di-ammonium phosphate and grades of complex fertilisers containing nitrogen, phosphorus, potash and sulphur. The approved rates apply from October 1, 2026, through March 31, 2027. The allocation puts seasonal spending on subsidies for this category at the centre of monitoring India’s agricultural subsidy bill in the current fiscal year.
The new allocation is higher than the official estimate of about 37,952.29 crore rupees for the 2025-26 Rabi season. The expansion comes as the government has earmarked 1.7 lakh crore rupees in total for fertiliser subsidies in fiscal 2026-27, including 1.17 lakh crore rupees for urea. The seasonal figure reflects subsidy needs for the phosphatic and potassic fertilisers covered by the Cabinet decision, while the annual allocation also includes urea. The government said the subsidy revision takes account of recent trends in international prices for fertilisers and inputs. It cited urea, di-ammonium phosphate, muriate of potash and sulphur among those inputs.
The approved subsidy rates per kilogram are 94.21 rupees for nitrogen, 66.11 rupees for phosphorus, 2.38 rupees for potash and 10.42 rupees for sulphur. These rates determine the subsidy value according to the nutrients in the covered fertilisers, while the programme aims to help the government adjust subsidies as international input prices change. The decision covers di-ammonium phosphate and grades of complex fertilisers containing nitrogen, phosphorus, potash and sulphur. The ministry said the aim is to ensure fertilisers are available to farmers at affordable prices. The government pays the subsidy to manufacturers and importers at the announced rates.
The nutrient-based subsidy programme has covered phosphatic and potassic fertilisers since April 1, 2010. The government says it makes 28 grades of these fertilisers, including di-ammonium phosphate, available to farmers through manufacturers and importers at subsidised prices. In the current season’s decision, the government retained the measure providing a bag of di-ammonium phosphate at a fixed price of 1,350 rupees per 50 kilograms. The measure links input subsidies to the aim of limiting the burden on farmers when they buy fertiliser. The decision is part of a seasonal mechanism that sets subsidy rates for the 2026-27 Rabi period.
Available inventory data showed that India held 235.21 lakh tonnes of fertilisers on November 10, up 35.6% from 173.46 lakh tonnes on the same date a year earlier. The figure offers a snapshot of available domestic supplies at the start of the Rabi season, alongside the government’s decision on funding and subsidised prices. Total inventories alone do not determine the direction of fertiliser prices, as the announced subsidy decision is based on fertiliser and input prices in international markets. The government has previously said international prices of di-ammonium phosphate had risen to unaffordable levels since the Covid years, while it kept the price of a bag at 1,350 rupees during the 2026 Kharif season. This comes as it continues to support the sale price for farmers despite changes in overseas prices.
The decision was reflected in fertiliser stocks during the November 11 session: FACT shares rose to 813.25 rupees at the close on the National Stock Exchange of India, gaining 8.67% to become the sector’s biggest gainer, according to Moneycontrol. The gains followed Cabinet approval of the seasonal subsidy allocation. Investors track fertiliser companies in light of the role manufacturers and importers play in delivering the programme’s covered fertilisers to farmers. The size of the seasonal funding also places the decision within the fertiliser subsidy budget for fiscal 2026-27. The approved rates remain in effect through March 31, 2027.