This has come as a major blow to the fertiliser industry's expansion plan initiatives in the country considering that the current policy is anyway not conducive to expansion and growth, said a senior official of a public sector company.

According to industry sources, the clearances have been deferred as a difference of opinion between the planning commission and the ministry of agriculture and ministry of fertilisers has cropped up of the issue of whether urea should be imported or the industry should go in for a future build up of capacities.

This block of threeprojects had come up before the PIB last week on a priority basis, said sources.The planning commission is of the view that urea should be imported into the country considering that the international price is coming down.

The ministry of agriculture and the department of fertilisers, on the contrary, believe that the international price trend is a seasonal fluctuation and the drop in the urea price in the international market is no indication of the future things to come.

The ministry of fertilisers is in favour of increasing urea capacities in the domestic market, considering that to meet the target of doubling of the agriculture output, the country would require to double the fertiliser output as well. This, the ministry believes, would also help save foreign exchange outgo. With no convergent view emerging on the issue, the delay in clearances for the projects is likely to have a demoralising effect on fertiliser companies going in for expansions, industry experts feel. RCF has applied for PIBclearance for setting up a third stream of urea-ammonia plant at Thal in Maharashtra.