The seed industry has started taking advantage of the genetic engineering techniques now available for developing seeds with high yield potential. No doubt there are only a handful of seed manufacturers currently involved in this research process. Also, the effort is limited to only selected fruit, vegetable and cash crops. But already quite a few varieties of these crops are being commercially marketed in India. The farmers have responded well and are prepared to pay good price because yield potential is high and benefits are large. In some cases 100 gram seed packet is sold for Rs 60 to 150, which is a very high price. This also shows that farmers are willing to spend money on inputs in a liberal manner because returns are handsome.

Those who worry about growing input prices should take positive note of this.In the coming five, six years this research and development base in seeds is going to become wide and covering large number of crops. This will make a positive contribution towards increased per hectare yields of all crops including foodgrains and help in doubling our crops yields in the next 10 years. The controversy of terminal seed, which is quite unnecessarily raised, should not cloud our thinking about basic seed research and its increasing network. We must appreciate this.

In sharp contrast, the research effort to develop new products in fertiliser sector is practically nil. This may sound bewildering, but it is true. The fertiliser industry has grown to big proportion in India. We now produce 32 to 33 million tonnes of various fertiliser and use nearly 40 million tonnes of them in India. The consumption per hectare is close to 225 kg of material. However, our product base is extremely poor, we are obsessed with solid and packed fertilisers and our dependence on urea for supply of nitrogen, on diammonium phosphate (DAP) for phosphate and on imported muriate of potash for potash is too high. We have allowed and encouraged our fertiliser industry on imported technology and imported products. No doubt some products like single super phosphate, fertiliser mixtures in granulated or powder form have been developed by us along with special products like boronated SSP, zinckated SSP, micronutrients but otherwise our product drawer is quite empty. In USA, Europe and even in smallcountries like Israel emphasis has been on development of variety of fertiliser products in all forms and they have immensely benefited from it.

There is an urgent need to develop a National Fertiliser Research Institute on the lines of the Fertiliser Institute in UK. The task of this institute would be to develop new fertiliser products based on indigenous technology and prepare materials to suit our soil and crop needs. Particular emphasis has to be on developing technology for direct application of anhydrous ammonia which is the richest and the cheapest source of nitrogen in the world and to develop new liquid, semi liquid, viscous formulations along with NP or NPK soluble fertilisers, secondary products to supply sulphur, calcium magnesium and a new variety of products supplying micronutrients in single or multiple forms. This institute should be an independent body supported and financed by the industry, so that it can achieve results in quick time. The FAI had tried to set up such an institute in 1968 but subsequently it became a technical wing of FAI and the purpose remained unfulfilled.

The fertiliser industry has rendered excellent contribution to the cause of the nation by it massive growth, good capacity utilisation of installed capacity which is the best in the world, excellent utilisation of energy resources, good cost control due to high level of production, comprehensive distribution systems which permit easy availability in time at consumption centres, variety of promotional and development work to help the farmers in better use of fertilisers, etc. In line with this, the industry must now develop the research base for new products and contribute its might in increasing fertiliser consumption to a level of 70 to 75 millions tonnes in the next 10 years so that the target of 400 million tonnes of foodgrain production is achieved. The new seeds will give better crops only if they are grown in adequate fertile conditions which is possible with judicious use of manure and fertiliser. Development of new products will provide better base to this industry and would also boost indigenoustechnology and agro-based industry. Meanwhile let us sportively laud the good work done by the seed industry.

The author is a director, Rama Phosphates Ltd